KENILWORTH – The playground at Hutchinson Park in Mount Forest is set to be upgraded by Park N Water Ltd. for $149,651.
The new play structure at Lion Merv Weber Playground will be designed with accessibility in mind, but will not include a wheelchair accessible swing.
Hutchinson Park is located at Queen Street and Birmingham Street in Mount Forest.
The playground’s sand surface will be replaced with engineered wood fibre and the older portion of the structure will be removed and replaced.
Existing newer components, including the swings and plastic play pieces, will remain.
Lot drainage will be improved and a barrier will be installed along Queen Street.
“The design includes opportunities for climbing, sliding, spinning, swinging, balancing, upper body activities and bouldering,” states a report presented to council on April 21.
“By focussing on a variety of play, the playground will offer social, creative, imaginative and sensory play experiences.
“Activities are designed for beginner, intermediate and advanced play, encouraging children to return to the play environment time after time.”
Four tenders were submitted for the project and evaluated based on a range of criteria, including cost, design, timeline, experience, warranty and ease of maintenance.
According to the report, “Park N Water has over 30 years of experience in designing and installing playgrounds across Canada, with over 450 completed projects, including notable installations in municipalities like Tillsonburg, Middlesex Centre and Sault Ste. Marie.”
The company provides a 24-hour response time for warranty and vandalism issues.
“Although all submissions were close in their scoring, Park N Water Ltd. ultimately received the highest points,” stated the Wellington North staff report.
Council awarded the tender to Park N Water during a regular meeting of council on April 22.
A six per cent contingency fee, subject to community feedback, was also approved during the meeting.
Design options will be presented during community consultation to gather input from residents “to ensure the new playground meets the community’s needs and preferences,” the report states.
The township budgeted $160,000 for the project.
In a 2018 survey, 82% of respondents “supported additional investment in playgrounds through continued upgrades, including features accessible to children with disabilities,” according to the report.
“Playground design has evolved over time, from traditional elements such as slides, swings and climbers to more creative elements that involve interactive and challenging play, with most playground features having a lifespan of about 20 years,” the report states.
According to the report, accessible features of the park include “transfer stations, sensory-rich play elements and ground-level activities to ensure inclusivity for children of all abilities.”
But it does not include a swing that can accommodate a wheelchair, and neither does any other public park in Wellington North, noted councillor Penny Renken during the meeting.
“That is apparently very expensive to get that,” she said.
“Would we be able to put it in the budget for future years to put money aside to be able to have one park within the township that has such an accommodation?”
Mayor Andy Lennox said “certainly we could put it in the budget, but we would need a more fulsome understanding of what are the implications to do that.
“So I look to staff to do that,” Lennox said, asking CAO Brook Lambert to look into it.
“If it’s determined that that would be desired, that could be something that gets included,” Labert said.
The township will examine accessibility of playgrounds, trails and parks during the Recreation Master Plan process in 2026, added community and economic development manager Mandy Jones.
“If council is interested in staff exploring a fully accessible playground – so that includes fully rubberized surfacing as well as ramps for wheelchair accessibly, that is certainly something that staff could look into for future budget considerations,” she said.
“The engineered wood fibre is considered an accessible surfacing. As it settles, it becomes a matting that strollers, walkers (and) wheelchairs can go across.
“But if you want to get the highest level of accessible surfacing, that’s where that poured padding will come in.”
