Meredith to vote on a new play structure at Prescott Park

MEREDITH — The town of Meredith will get a revamped play structure at Prescott Park, should the town vote in favor of its $150,000 construction at the town March 9.

So far, the project is looking popular with town leadership. The selectboard recommended Warrant Article 16, a measure to appropriate the funds, in a unanimous 5-0 vote.

Prescott Park has been without a proper play structure since 2016, when the old one was torn down due to safety concerns. 

“There’s one at the community center, and one at Child’s Park,” said Lindsay Weiner of Friends of Meredith Parks and Recreation, a nonprofit organization. “We wanted to bring in some elements that aren’t featured in those local playgrounds, so we had kids pick out the pieces of equipment they wanted. It’s kid-approved.”

“The members of the board of directors each got a catalog,”  explained Peter Thorndike, president of Friends of Meredith Parks and Recreation, “All of our board members have small kids. They flipped through it and picked out features.”

The board then voted on the most popular features to be incorporated into the final design. 

The proposed structure will be built by O’Brien and Sons, a Massachusetts-based construction company specializing in outdoor recreation sites. 

The plan for the play structure features climbing ladders, slides, walkways, and some log facades. 

“It has sort of a treehouse vibe of parts of the structure,” Weiner said.

“We wanted a nature-themed kind of design,” Thorndike said. “They have some features with tree fort features and boulders and stuff.”

In addition to the proposed funds of $150,000 raised from the town, Weiner stated the group is hoping to raise an extra $75,000 through fundraising. 

“The group doesn’t want to put the financial burden entirely on the town,” Weiner explained. “We’re already over $20,000 in terms of the fundraising that we’ve done. We have a lot of things cooking to get the additional $50,000-plus from our group fundraising.”

Both Thorndike and Weiner expressed confidence in their ability to raise the extra funds, and the passage of Article 16. 

“Based on the support that we got for the skatepark, I’m very confident the town will give us a yes vote,” Thorndike asserted. 

In 2020, Meredith completed renovation of Hart Family Memorial Skatepark, which was partially funded thanks to efforts by the Friends of Meredith Parks and Recreation. That project had an outpouring of positive support from the town.