Morse Pond Elementary School Playground
Location: 323 Jones Road, Falmouth
Applicant: Falmouth Department of Public Works and Morse Pond School
Allocation: $62,000
Year/Article: November 2013, A40
The Morse Pond Elementary School Playground was originally built in 1996 as a community event. It serves the school’s 600 5th and 6th grade students as well as children and families from all over the community and visitors year-round. It is also used for after school programs and summer camps for people of different ages.
In 2013, the Morse Pond School playground equipment had deteriorated to the extent of being unsafe for children to use. The school’s Parent Teachers Organization (PTO) applied to the CPFund for$62,000 to rehabilitate the playground and provide ADA accessibility, with the work to be done by the Parks Department. The playground rehabilitation was completed and certified as ADA-compliant in 2015. With a huge dome-shaped climbing structure, swings for different ages, a merry-go-round and a colorful fort with a slide exit, it was immediately popular and in use during and after school hours, over weekends, and during the summer. The Parks Department performs routine maintenance and the PTO also has a line item in its budget for ongoing improvements and maintenance.