Roswell Approves $1.54 Million to Replace Playgrounds at Four Parks

Four Roswell parks will get replacement playgrounds under a $1.54 million project intended to retire aging equipment and give children of different ages and abilities more ways to play.

Updated Oct. 19 with the city’s responses on accessibility, construction scheduling and conceptual designs.

The City Council voted 5-0 on Oct. 13 to approve the work at East Roswell Park, Groveway Community Park, Roswell Area Park and Sloan Street Park. Dominica Recreation Products will handle the replacements.

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The city’s target is to finish all four by June 1, 2027. That is a completion goal, not an announced reopening date for each playground.

Replacing equipment that predates 2010

Each playground selected for replacement was installed before 2010. Aging equipment has brought more maintenance, more frequent replacement of parts and growing safety concerns.

The approved project covers removal of existing equipment and surfacing, site preparation, new playground equipment, replacement surfacing and installation.

Accessibility is part of that work, rather than a separate future addition. The designs must address Americans with Disabilities Act requirements and include adaptive and inclusive play elements. An independent certified playground safety inspector must inspect the installations before final acceptance.

All four playgrounds will have adaptive swings, Tiffani Armstead, a senior marketing advisor for the city, told North Atlanta Star in an Oct. 19 email. Armstead provided the responses after consulting Steven Malone, Roswell’s Recreation, Parks, Historic & Cultural Affairs director.

Groveway will have the greatest concentration of inclusive and adaptive play features because of its proximity to the Adaptive Rotary Dream Field, Armstead said.

The city also shared conceptual renderings for all four playgrounds, presented to the mayor and council on Oct. 13. The designs remain subject to change.

Rendering Credit: Dominica Recreation Products. Conceptual Rendering – For Illustrative Purposes Only. Final design, equipment, colors, materials, layout, and features are subject to change.

Four familiar destinations

The work reaches parks in several parts of Roswell.

East Roswell Park is at 9000 Fouts Road. Groveway Community Park is at 160 Frank Lewis Drive, while Roswell Area Park is at 10495 Woodstock Road. Sloan Street Park, at 75 Sloan Street, provides a smaller neighborhood destination. The city’s facility directory provides location and contact information for park visits.

The authorization concerns playground replacements at those parks, not wholesale reconstruction of all four properties. Families should distinguish playground construction notices from closures affecting an entire park or its other facilities.

Bond money pays for the work

The contract totals $1,468,683.14. The broader project authorization is $1,542,117, funded through the 2022 Parks Bond Program.

Roswell combined the four replacements into one procurement to coordinate design and construction and apply common standards for safety, accessibility and maintenance. Playground renewal was a priority in the city’s 2022 parks master plan, informed by resident feedback.

Closures will be staggered if possible

Roswell intends to stagger the replacements to minimize disruption and avoid closing all four playgrounds simultaneously. Specific construction and closure dates will be determined as the city works through the contract process with Dominica, Armstead said.

The city will announce playground closures through its official social media platforms. Park-specific closure and reopening dates have not yet been announced.