Snow is on the ground and the playground is empty. But, soon spring will come and kids going to the park will have a brand new play area.
“We try to replace equipment every 18 to 22 years,” said Jerome Krieger, who is with the Blaine Parks and Recreation Department. “This one being 20 years old was on the list to get replaced. It’s a $115,000 project for the playground equipment, installation, the fiber and a concrete border.”
When the snow melts and the ground is no longer frozen, the new fun zone will rise up and be ready in three to four months.
“We’ve been getting equipment in before the kids get out of school,” Krieger said. “So usually late April, early May this will probably be in the ground and ready to go so that the kids once they get out of school can enjoy it all summer long.”
Park-centric
Krieger believes Blaine is a park-centric city.
“Blaine has a lot of parks,” Krieger said. ” We have many parks, probably more parks than most cities of our size.”
The city is always looking to improve play areas.
“We have 54 playground sets in our city,” Krieger said. “In the last 10 years we’ve replaced 36 sets of playground equipment already.”
Blaine’s goal is to make each park unique.
“We build different playgrounds in different colors and different shapes and sizes,” Krieger said. “We want the community to get out and actually visit the different parks.”
Jefferson Park is located in the northwest part of the city.
