January 7, 2020 by Carol Britton Meyer
The Selectmen support the latest proposal "to restore the Hingham Centre play area," according to a Dec. 12 letter from Town Administrator Tom Mayo to Hingham Centre Play Area Committee member Michael Monteiro, as long as there is enough private funding to do so.
A group of residents, spearheaded by Spring Street resident Mark Cullings, started an initiative in the spring of 2017 to replace the deteriorating play equipment at Powers Field adjacent to the Hingham Centre Cemetery after the town placed yellow warning tape around it to prevent further use due to safety concerns. The equipment was removed last month.
The town is committed to building the new play area -- which proponents say will be enjoyed by families and children for generations to come as it was in the past -- this spring according to the site plan dated June 5, 2019, "provided that the requisite funding has been secured," Mayo stated in the letter.
This comes as good news to Monteiro and fellow committee members. Cullings is no longer a member.
Monteiro provided a funding update to the Hingham Anchor this week. "The estimated cost is around $70,000. We have raised approximately $30,000 and have verbal commitments for another $30,000," he said. "We will be asking a local playground installer for an updated estimate [in the near future]. We expect to close the remaining fundraising gap in the next few weeks." That will put the town in a position for the playground to be built this April, weather permitting, according to Monteiro.
Aesthetic concerns addressed
Due to concerns expressed by some residents regarding the aesthetics of the proposed climber in the original plan, the committee proposed what Monteiro calls a "less functional, minimalist version" -- which he refers to as the "revised/compromise plan."
The most-recent, ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act)-compliant design includes a seesaw, swing set with two swings and an attached "saucer" for children with disabilities, and a scaled-back framed climber to replace the former seesaw, swing set, and jungle gym. The earlier plan approved by town officials in June 2018 called for an additional, larger climber and no seesaw. The surface would be wood chips, with an earth-tone rubber walkway.
The committee has continued to work with town officials to help bring the project to reality, culminating in the Dec. 12 letter.
It can be a challenge to come up with a proposal that balances the diverse views of a community like Hingham, Monteiro said. However, "after gathering input from over 200 citizens [partly through an online survey] and working closely with town officials, playground equipment manufacturers, local installers, and local landscape architect Sean Papich over nearly three years, we believe we have a plan that does so exceptionally well. We have more work to do, but I am grateful for the engagement, thoughtful feedback, and continued support of the town and our local community."
Cullings stepped down from the committee last July at a neighborhood meeting about the proposed playground due to reservations he has about the proposal that was ultimately approved by the Selectmen.
"The old playground has a permanent place in my heart. It was there when I first saw the home in which we raised our family and I have lived for over 40 years," he told the Hingham Anchor. "I started the idea of replacing the old equipment thinking it would be a simple project. When it became clear that both contemporary safety standards and ADA compliance had to be factored in, I ceded the leadership of the project to Michael Monteiro."
Looking back
Cullings recalls that the "small committee of four that became three" decided to approach the Selectmen to gauge support for such a project "before talking to neighbors and the neighborhood about specifics related to the design. The proposal presented to the Selectmen was accepted, but it had never been circulated among the abutters or the neighborhood."
It should be noted, however, said Monteiro, that according to the timeline outlined on the Save Hingham Centre Play Area website ( https://savehinghamcentreplayground.weebly.com/), a number of outreach initiatives and steps were taken in order to secure community feedback prior to the initial June 2018 approval of the design by the Board of Selectmen. “These included the June 2017 establishment of the website and an e-mail list for those who wanted to receive project updates, a February 2018 survey seeking community feedback on design plan options (to which nearly 200 people responded), a number of newspaper articles published in local papers, and an invitation on the website blog and to everyone on the e-mail list to attend the June 5, 2018 Board of Selectmen meeting,” he said.
Referring to the July meeting, which was held at his house, Cullings notes that there was "considerable conversation about alternatives. After being a supporter of the plan, I heard some concerns that made very good sense. I changed my mind. I don’t believe the approved plan is appropriate for the site."
Cullings said he would support something less intrusive and more in keeping with the historical nature of the site and its surroundings. "I and others asked officials for help clarifying aesthetic and appropriateness concerns, but there appears to be no mechanism for that in town."
Cullings said he's concerned that with the recent announcement in Mayo's letter, "a project is going to go forward without the support of the immediate neighbors who have unanimously requested, via petition, that a design more appropriate for the character of the area be considered. Although asked, the Selectmen will not reconsider their decision to approve the plan presented."
Cullings said he has been under the understanding that the town "would build an alternative to the approved plan if ‘everyone’ agrees."
Cullings is a member of a new committee made up of abutters and close neighbors. "We are meeting to design an alternative to the approved plan," he said. "All involved in the project have expressed their love for the little play area and support something to replace it. And all have said they want to do ’the right thing.’"
It's unclear at this time how coming up with an alternative design would affect the Selectmen's support for building the new playground as currently proposed this spring.
For further information visit https://savehinghamcentreplayground.weebly.com/supporters.html.