WAYNE -- If the children of Wayne had their way, the playground at their town's elementary school would be dominated by swings, and it would feature a pool, skate park, miniature-golf course, trampoline, sand box and merry-go-round.

The children in this town will get much of what they want in a new play structure, but they'll have to put forth much of the effort in order to get it.

Children and their parents took a sneak peek Monday night at what their town's new playground will look like.

 

Video by Betsy Connor Bowen

 

 

Not only will they enjoy the structure once it's done, they'll be at work building it starting Sept. 23.

Playground designer Barry Segal, of the Ithaca, N.Y., playground-design firm Leathers Associates, solicited children's ideas for the playground during a summer camp session Monday morning. By Monday night, he had sketched out the design, and he showed it to residents gathered at the Ladd Recreation Center.

Leathers Associates specializes in designing playgrounds based on community input and overseeing their construction by volunteer crews.

Brian McNamara suggested a play structure with a tire swing, a crawl-through area and a rock wall. He'll get to see some of his ideas come to fruition in Segal's design.

"He had a lot of nice ideas, especially the tires," said Brian, 8.

Segal's design features a tire tunnel, a rock wall, monkey bars, a suspension bridge, swings, "hopping pods" and a slew of other play features.

The play structure will replace the castle-themed, Wayne Elementary School playground built in 1988, condemned last year for structural deficiencies and removed from the school's property weeks ago.

Leathers Associates designed that playground, too, after soliciting input from children. The firm oversaw its construction by volunteers.

The new play structure will retain the castle theme, with two lookout towers.

"Kids wanted high places that they could look out," Segal said.

Though the theme is similar, the structure will be fundamentally different. Unlike the arsenic-laced wood used to build the last structure, Wayne's new playground will be made from recycled plastics that require minimal maintenance.

Playground committee members have raised nearly half the $60,000 they'll need to construct the playground. No public money is funding the project.

Committee chairman Jeff Ireland said the playground team will plan some conventional community fundraisers to raise the money, but will concentrate on pursuing grants and component sales, in which businesses sponsor parts of the structure.

"It's pretty hard to nickel and dime your way to $60,000," Ireland said.

The structure built in 1988 cost $37,000, with Leathers Associates charging $7,000 to design it and supervise the construction.

When inspectors last year suggested it be removed, the playground committee formed and spent nearly a year deciding what to do.

In sessions that, at times, became divisive, committee members decided between repairing the original structure and razing it to make way for a new one.

"That was some tough work that we had to do together," Ireland said.

Matthew Stone -- 623-3811, ext. 435

mstone@centralmaine.com