Cranbury Celebrates New Playground

A version of this story appears in TheDailyNorwalk.com

All of Cranbury Elementary School piled onto their new playground on a blustery Wednesday morning chanting "Playground! Playground!" The students were celebrating the official opening of the play area and its new swings, climbing structures and lots of monkey bars.
PTO President April Guilbault, along with the playground committee of Cranbury dads Bill Smith, John Claudio, Tony Brown and George Arvanitis, cut the red ribbon.

The playground had been over a year in the making, says Guilbault, who spearheaded the project. "The old playground was sad. It was small, had no swings, broken parts, chipped paint, and just wasn't safe," she said of the 13-year-old facility. "The new playground utilizes the space much better."

After becoming PTO president, Guilbault reached out to Mike Moccaie, director of Parks and Recreation, and made the case for a new playground. "It was a question of good timing, need and speaking up," says Guilbault.

The city's playgrounds, including the ones at schools, are paid for and maintained by the Parks and Recreation Dept. Cranbury's playground cost $89,000, according to Moccaie. The life expectancy of a playground is approximately 15 years, during which the city replaces equipment as needed. Wolfpit and Jefferson Elementary Schools are slated to get new playgrounds in the next year, says Moccaie.

Cranbury PTO mom Susan Zelman adds, "This school is a big believer in going outside for recess every day." Zelman's second-grade son, Alex, goes out for recess after lunch and is excited about one new playground feature. "I'm happy it has swings."

Guilbault adds that the playground is used by more than just the school. "This is a neighborhood playground," she says, noting that there are summer camps at the school and baseball games on the adjacent field. "It is used by so many kids."

Are you satisfied with the playground at your school?