Kensington Park Playground Swings Into Specifics

The Mendota Heights Parks and Recreation Commission decided June 14 that three separate vendor proposals for equipment to replace the outdated Kensington Park playground missed the mark, based on recent feedback from residents.

Representatives from Flanagan Sales, Inc., Clearwater Recreation, and Flagship Recreation presented ideas for specific equipment and layouts.

The existing playground, built in 1989, has. The city plans to replace the current playground this fall, with construction beginning in September.

“I’d say they are great efforts, they came up with really nice ideas,” commission member Stephanie Levine said of the current proposals, “But in short I would say we can do better, we should do better.”

Levine and fellow commission member Mary McGrory-Usset made a particular effort to gather children’s opinions. After the , the two commission members solicited ideas from a classroom of children at , from over 100 children at nearby , and from families at the park.

While the vendors presented specific ideas for the playground, the current proposals lacked a few of the particular elements children repeatedly requested.

“With rare exception, children went for the web,” said Levine, referring to a relatively new style of playground climbing structure made of flexible webbing or netting.

“It was the one thing everyone wanted,” said McGrory-Usset.

With that in mind, the commission compiled a list of items with the greatest priority, the first being a web structure for kids ages five to twelve. Other mandatory features include separate structures for older and younger children, straight, immobile monkey bars, slides and an engineered wood fiber surface.

Other items determined to be “highly desirable” include a tire swing, a spinner, pour-in-place surface over the existing concrete in one section of the playground, a climbing wall and balance elements.

The specifics will be passed on to the vendors, and the second round of proposals are scheduled to be heard at the commission’s July meeting.

The additional proposals shouldn’t slow down the process, however, according to Jake Sedlacek, assistant city administrator.

“It will depend on the vendor we choose and what their workload is like,” Sedlacek explained after the meeting, “but we should still be able to get started after school begins.”

Trails plan being assembled, Par 3 fee increase considered

Also at Tuesday’s meeting, Sedlacek shared resident feedback on the state of Mendota Heights trails. The commission directed staff to put together a five-year plan for maintenance and improvement based on the overall feedback.

A slow spring start to the golf season at has commissioners asking staff to compile information on the possibility of a golfing rate increase. Commissioners may consider a hike depending on how the season progresses, and whether Par 3 could continue to be among the least expensive courses locally.