Changes coming to Mason Parks

• Video shows Mayor Whipple discussing what led to the new Rayner Park plan and how neighbors are feeling about the park build in the 90's.
• Back in 2020, the city surveyed the community which resulted in neighbors wanting more of a modern park.
• The new park will be accessible to all children, unlike the current park.

(The following is a transcription of the full broadcast story)

Changes coming to Mason parks... I'm your neighborhood reporter Sarah Poulos here at Payner Park play structure... which won't be around much longer.

"Several years ago the issue came up that the playground here at Rayner Park was in need of some repairs."

And now, construction is coming to the park later this summer...

"Playground structure design has changed dramatically, Leathers, the company that did this does not build these anymore."

Starting July 15th and wrapping up...

"First of August or so, the playground will be in place."

The current park was built by neighbors, but this time around...

"Nobody stepped forward to lead the community labor front."

So, the city moved forward with conducting a survey, which showed the majority of neighbors want more of a modern design as you can see in this preview of what the new park will look like...

But that feeling wasn't unanimous... One neighbor, Denise Schaffer, commented on a Mason community Facebook post saying it could have been avoided. She goes on to say that the city did not maintain it properly.

"In 2016 the city took full ownership and did that without really doing as good a job as we could have and anticipating the cost of how to maintain it."

Mayor Russel Whipple said he understands why people in the community may be upset. He tells me that there have been numerous times for public comment, but that they have strongly followed the survey results.

"This park has done its job. The work that they put in has not been forgot. It's been for good. It's created a great playground for a very long time, and now it's time to move on to a new playground."

Rayner Park isn't the only park transforming. Mayor Whipple says there is more to come. In Mason, I'm Sarah Poulos, Fox 47 News.

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