The children of West Lansing already have three playgrounds, and there are two more on the way. So the neighbourhood adults decided it was their turn.
Sometime around midsummer, Gwendolyn Park will be the home of an adult fitness circuit located around the perimeter of the park. The six stations will be connected by a 500-metre pathway with a natural mulch surface.
The concept was selected by residents from several options I presented at a community meeting in December.
Their initial choice was then refined at two subsequent meetings, at which community members selected the type and style of equipment and how it should be laid out.
Each station includes a piece of equipment, a sign showing how to use it and a bench for stretching or resting. An outdoor concrete ping-pong table — one of several we are adding to area parks this year — will be placed near the existing Gwendolyn Park playground, as will two new picnic tables.
This is an excellent example of local government and area residents working closely together to create a better community.
Notices for the community meeting were delivered to 1,400 households led by Kellina Horgan, daughter of West Lansing Homeowners Association president Phil Horgan and his wife Kathryn Atkinson.
I am also meeting with residents in the Edithvale area to plan a similar project.
Other parks improvements elsewhere in the ward will be planned this year, to be built next year.