'Progression is always good': $400k park renovation moving forward in Middletown

If you've walked past Oakland Park in Middletown, you've probably noticed that it's seen better days. The playground is not only rusted, it's falling apart.

"It's bad," resident Kip Hightower said. "It needs to be upgraded. The community could do a lot better in that area."

"Needs upgraded bad," said another resident, Michael Shaw. "Unsafe for kids, unsafe for animals, looks bad to the neighborhood...always been this way, they cut the grass, that's about it."

We noticed cracks in the playground slide, rusted platforms where kids stand and broken glass in the wood chips as well as in the picnic area.

"We used to let them play here, but there's too much glass sometimes and there's glass in the fields," Shaw said.

Shaw said he avoids walking his 4-year-old dachshund terrier mix Zoe through the park.

The basketball courts have weeds growing through the cement cracks. Some fences are bent or broken. The picnic tables themselves have also seen some better days. The cement in that area is also uneven.

"People can trip and get injured on this," said Clayton Castle, the city's communication manager.

On Tuesday, Middletown City Council will consider a plan for a $400,000 park transformation.

"It's really going to blow other parks out of the water," Castle said. "The courts, the hoops, everything is going to look brand new come this time next year."

Not only will the playground be replaced, but the city is planning to replace one of the basketball courts by adding two pickleball courts.

"I'd like to see it get done — I mean we pay city taxes," Shaw said.

Hightower said he believes keeping all of the basketball courts would better suit the public. He would like to see something different at Oakland Park, like a pool.

"It's a start, progression is always good," said Hightower. "It will all come together eventually if everyone works together."