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Vol. LXI, No. 21
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Wednesday, May 23, 2007
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Vol. LXI, No. 21
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Wednesday, May 23, 2007
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Potts Playground is one of those successful pocket parks in the Borough, providing quiet solitude for residents of the surrounding neighborhood, some play equipment for area kids, while offering an in-town location where residents can hold community events.
Tucked away on a corner connecting the Borough segment of Tee-Ar Place and Erdman Avenue, Potts Playground is about to be the beneficiary of a $63,000 grant. According to Princeton Recreation Department officials who are working with the Borough on the rehab project, the grant would add some new life to the park, but not at the expense of its neighborhood charm.
"I spoke with a neighbor recently, and her concern was that we're going to make it too fancy," said Kate Herlihy, Recreation Department program supervisor. "She was worried that it would draw thousands of kids from all over, and I assured her that that was not the case at all — we're just updating what's there."
Last year, the Princeton Parks Alliance, a not-for-profit parks conservancy headed up by Borough Councilman Andrew Koontz, received a $261,382 grant, with about $141,000 going toward a planned skate park in the Township's Hilltop Park, and the balance being used for general playground rehabilitation at Hilltop Park, as well as upgrading playground equipment and repaving the basketball court at Potts Playground.
Princeton Recreation Department officials were slated to appear before Borough Council last night to discuss the agency's progress. Ms. Herlihy said that actual construction will take about six weeks, and could get started this summer. The Recreation Department presentation occurred after Town Topics went to press.
"It's the type of park where you can go and leave your toys, and then come back the next day and still find them there," Ms. Herlihy said. "It has something for all the age groups: a sandbox, basketball court, and all the play equipment.
"We're well aware of the character of the park, and that's what we're going back to with this project."
Plans for the Potts Playground (named, according to Princeton: On the Streets Where We Live, by and for Princeton Shopping Center developer Theodore ("Tee") Roosevelt ("Ar") Potts) include new back boards and rims for the basketball court, three new picnic tables, three new benches, two additional pieces of playground equipment, four new swings with two belt seats and two toddler seats, and a relocated whirl, which was installed last year.
Only in Princeton would the whirl have a story of its own — and it does. The whirl sat in Princeton Borough's Public Works garage on Harrison Street for several months after a failed attempt to install it in a small park on Pine Street left the piece homeless. It was installed in Potts Playground, but the installation was not completely successful, leaving part of the base exposed. Public Works, as part of this project, will reinstall the toy, this time in a more appropriate part of the park, Ms. Herlihy said.
Finally, a blacktop path, compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act standards, will encompass the park.
"This is a community meeting spot, and you walk in there, and it looks great, and hopefully, this will make it even better," Ms. Herlihy said.
Potts Playground is one of those successful pocket parks in the Borough, providing quiet solitude for residents of the surrounding neighborhood, some play equipment for area kids, while offering an in-town location where residents can hold community events.
Tucked away on a corner connecting the Borough segment of Tee-Ar Place and Erdman Avenue, Potts Playground is about to be the beneficiary of a $63,000 grant. According to Princeton Recreation Department officials who are working with the Borough on the rehab project, the grant would add some new life to the park, but not at the expense of its neighborhood charm.
"I spoke with a neighbor recently, and her concern was that we're going to make it too fancy," said Kate Herlihy, Recreation Department program supervisor. "She was worried that it would draw thousands of kids from all over, and I assured her that that was not the case at all — we're just updating what's there."
Last year, the Princeton Parks Alliance, a not-for-profit parks conservancy headed up by Borough Councilman Andrew Koontz, received a $261,382 grant, with about $141,000 going toward a planned skate park in the Township's Hilltop Park, and the balance being used for general playground rehabilitation at Hilltop Park, as well as upgrading playground equipment and repaving the basketball court at Potts Playground.
Princeton Recreation Department officials were slated to appear before Borough Council last night to discuss the agency's progress. Ms. Herlihy said that actual construction will take about six weeks, and could get started this summer. The Recreation Department presentation occurred after Town Topics went to press.
"It's the type of park where you can go and leave your toys, and then come back the next day and still find them there," Ms. Herlihy said. "It has something for all the age groups: a sandbox, basketball court, and all the play equipment.
"We're well aware of the character of the park, and that's what we're going back to with this project."
Plans for the Potts Playground (named, according to Princeton: On the Streets Where We Live, by and for Princeton Shopping Center developer Theodore ("Tee") Roosevelt ("Ar") Potts) include new back boards and rims for the basketball court, three new picnic tables, three new benches, two additional pieces of playground equipment, four new swings with two belt seats and two toddler seats, and a relocated whirl, which was installed last year.
Only in Princeton would the whirl have a story of its own — and it does. The whirl sat in Princeton Borough's Public Works garage on Harrison Street for several months after a failed attempt to install it in a small park on Pine Street left the piece homeless. It was installed in Potts Playground, but the installation was not completely successful, leaving part of the base exposed. Public Works, as part of this project, will reinstall the toy, this time in a more appropriate part of the park, Ms. Herlihy said.
Finally, a blacktop path, compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act standards, will encompass the park.
"This is a community meeting spot, and you walk in there, and it looks great, and hopefully, this will make it even better," Ms. Herlihy said.