Valley Stream playing it safer

Valley Stream officials are hoping to make local playgrounds safer, and have requested $425,000 from the county for upgrades at four facilities.

The village has applied for funding through the Community Development Block Grant program. Because of their past success in securing grants, village officials are confident that the money will come through.

Playgrounds at Firemen’s Field, Barrett Park, Arlington Park and adjacent to the hockey rink near the train station on Sunrise Highway would be upgraded. All four facilities would receive a new surface, and some would also get new equipment.

The small playground by the hockey rink has been closed since last fall, after the village’s insurance company deemed it unsafe. Most of the wood chips that covered the ground are gone, so a new rubberized surface would be installed. Until that happens, the playground will remain closed. “That’s probably the least used playground in the village,” said Tom McAleer, the superintendent of buildings.

Joosoo Kim, who takes her children, ages 12, 9 and 5, to the more heavily used playgrounds at Barrett Park and Firemen’s Field, said that Firemen’s could use fresh wood chips. The village plans do her one better: The playground there, adjacent to the parking lot on Albermarle Avenue, would also get the new rubberized surface.

At Barrett Park, the existing wood chips would be removed and replaced with rubber, and new equipment would also be installed. McAleer said it is probably the most used playground in the village, as it serves both park-goers on the south side and the village’s summer camp program.

The playground at Arlington Park already has the rubber surface, but it is cracking and peeling, and would be replaced. New equipment is also on tap for that park, in the west end, at Merrick Road and Arlington Avenue.

McAleer said that the rubberized surface is considered ideal for playgrounds. “Kids are less prone to injury when those are used,” he said. “You find it in all the new parks.”

The Kay Everson Playground, in Hendrickson Park, would remain untouched. The surface there is sand, and the equipment is sufficient, McAleer said.

Not everyone is a fan of the sand, however. Jamie Connelli, who brings her 5-year-old daughter to Everson, said she would like to see the rubber mats installed there, too. The sand is dirty, she said, and attracts flies.

As for Firemen’s Field, Connelli said she would like to see it enlarged, with more equipment and additional seating for parents. “Firemen’s Field is just so small,” she said. “There isn’t much there for the kids to play on. It definitely needs to be upgraded, and maybe expanded.”

Elizabeth Stevens, who lives around the block from Firemen’s and takes her children there, agreed that upgrades are needed. “They get bored fast because there isn’t much there,” she said. “Replacing the surface is definitely a good start, but it would be great if they added a few more things for the kids.”

McAleer said he expects that all that work could be done for the $425,000 the village is requesting. He noted that Valley Stream crews could remove the old equipment, saving about $13,000 in outside labor costs.

He added that the playgrounds that remain open are still safe, but are due for upgrades.

Over the past several years, the village has used block grant money for streetscape projects, which have included the replacement of sidewalks and curbs and the installation of decorative street lamps and brick pavers in Valley Stream’s business districts. The work at the north end of Central Avenue is being completed, the last phase of a multi-year project to upgrade the street from Merrick Road to the town line.

McAleer said that once village officials became aware that they could use the money for playgrounds, they decided to make that the priority for the next round of funding. The work on the parks would take place in late fall and winter, he said, so the new playgrounds would be ready for the spring.

Next year, the plan would be to resume the streetscape program, tackling Central Avenue from Merrick Road to Sunrise Highway.

Mayor Ed Fare said he wants to ensure that the playgrounds remain operable, and don’t get shut down like the one by the hockey rink. “It was distasteful to the board to consider shuttering any of the playgrounds,” he said. “Let’s get them compliant and safe.”

Fare added that in the future, he would like to add a playground on the Village Green, adjacent to the dog park.