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Upgrades planned for Tasker Park to make it ADA compliant

Funding from 2019 federal Community Development Block Grants will be used for upgrades to bring the Tasker Park playground in Peconic into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Denis Noncarrow, Southold’s government liaison officer, told Town Board members last Wednesday, that the sand surrounding the playground limits its accessibility to the elderly and community members with disabilities. A total of $230,000 is proposed for the project.

Fifteen percent of the CBDG money awarded to Southold Town for improvements can be passed on to community groups, and has gone in prior years to Community Action Southold Town and Maureen’s Haven.

Early last month, the Town Board passed a resolution to enter into an inter-municipal agreement with the Village of Greenport that allows the town to apply for funding on its behalf. So in addition to the playground upgrades, Mr. Noncarrow said, money will also go toward bringing sidewalks on Sixth Street in Greenport into ADA compliance. That cost is estimated at about $189,000. The town is still awaiting federal approval of its funding request.

The vision is for Tasker Park to be all-inclusive, with a wood fiber ground surface, platforms with non-slip vinyl coating and stainless steel that’s covered by a 100-year warranty. The upgrades will also include new features like ramps, a roller slide and other things to entertain children.

In 2013, the town opened its first ADA-compliant playground in Peconic, calling it The Reichert Family ADA Playground. The latest improvements are in addition to that work.

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Photo caption: Tasker Park in Peconic. (Rachel Siford photo)