Waltham officials open new accessible park

WALTHAM

Capping off more than a year of planning and $177,000 worth of fund-raising, Waltham officials last week opened the new Funway Park playground at William F. Stanley Elementary School.

At a dedication ceremony attended by about 200 people, Mayor Jeannette McCarthy and the city's Handicapped Services Commissioner Jerry LeBlanc watched a crowd of shrieking children to overrun the space, which was designed to also accommodate children in wheelchairs.

Over the summer, donors managed to come through with the last $8,000 needed to add rubber surfacing to the playground, which was ready in time for the first day of school.

Susan McKinney, a member of the volunteer committee that organized to build the park, said that the only detail yet unfinished is the dedication area, which will contain a brass plaque, a garden designed by the Waltham Garden Club, and a shade tree. The committee hopes to have that finished by the end of the year or whenever they can finish the plantings.

-- Stephanie V. Siek