A group of people chose not to sid idly by when a Saint John playground was on the city’s chopping block — and now, the grand opening of the brand-new $55,000 Swanton Street playground and basketball court in Champlain Heights is happening on Saturday.
“In our hearts we couldn’t see it being taken away, kids need a place to play, they need a community to stand behind them,” says Faith Cormier, one of the people who stepped up to the plate and took action.
Cormier says the city wanted to eliminate the playground but herself, Natalie Nelson and Cody Arnold gathered names on a petition and won the right to keep the park but not the equipment. She says the three of them and others in the neighbourhood worked very hard to replace everything with brand new equipment. She says this is a project they’ve been dealing with for about a year and a half now.
“I have a 15-year-old and I look after children myself, but kids need to have parks, they need to have outdoor activities, they need the air, and to get out.”
The grand opening is happening from 11am to 1pm.
