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Council weighs Barlow Farm as preferred site for inclusive playground after grant shortfall
Summary
After a federal appropriation request failed, Hudson staff presented two alternate sites for the city's inclusive playground; councilors expressed a preliminary preference for Barlow Farm Park, subject to HIP-group input and subcommittee review.
Hudson City Council on April 8 discussed alternate locations for a planned inclusive playground after the city did not receive the $800,000 federal appropriation it had sought for the original Middleton Road site. Staff presented two feasible alternate locations, Barlow Farm Park and Hudson Springs Park, and summarized funding available.
Staff said the inclusive design fits at both Barlow Farm and Hudson Springs but that site-specific costs and infrastructure needs differ. An estimate in the staff packet put the cost of building the playground at Barlow Farm at about $1.2 million (equipment, surfacing and modest site work) and at Hudson Springs at about $1.45 million when accounting for a larger restroom expansion and relocating an existing newer playground. Staff noted poured-in-place ADA surfacing is a major cost driver (hundreds of thousands of dollars).
Funding already identified includes $680,000 in state funds, $400,000 budgeted in the current year, and more than $200,000 raised privately at the Hudson Community Foundation for the project. That mix leaves a shortfall that staff said could be closed by continued fundraising or by reallocation of city funds.
Council members and staff raised practical concerns about each site. Several councilors said Hudson Springs already experiences parking pressure and that bringing a destination playground there would increase congestion even if staff expands parking (staff said an expansion to the lot was already budgeted). Other councilors favored Barlow Farm, noting adjacency to existing soccer fields and other park amenities that would let families move easily between activities.
Councilor Kowalski asked that members of the HIP (Hudson Inclusive Park) group be invited to a workshop meeting and that HIP representatives join the subcommittee meeting scheduled for next week; staff agreed to invite HIP and to return to council with a recommendation. Staff also noted the grant timeline: some grant funds will need project completion by June 2026, which in staff's timeline can be met if design and bidding proceed promptly.
No final council vote was taken April 8. Council members voiced a direction to pursue Barlow Farm as the preferred site subject to the subcommittee's review and HIP input, and staff said they would return with a refined cost estimate and construction schedule for council consideration.
Funding summary in staff materials: $680,000 (state), $400,000 (city budget), and $200,000+ (Hudson Community Foundation). Staff said the private fundraising effort continues.
