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Teachers ask Hallowell council to partner on Halldale Elementary playground replacement
Summary
PTO leaders from Halldale Elementary said the 15–20 year-old playground used by about 300 students needs full replacement at an estimated $80,000–$100,000; parents pledged roughly $28,000 and asked the city to consider a municipal contribution and committee review of funding options.
Representatives of the Halldale Elementary PTO asked the council to consider a municipal contribution to replace an aging playground that serves students and the town’s summer recreation program.
Sarah Radash, co‑secretary of the PTO and a fourth-grade teacher, and Ashley Lawrence, a fellow teacher and PTO member, told the council the playground is used daily by roughly 300 students during the school year and by the summer recreation program that enrolls more than 75 children per day. They said the playground is about 15–20 years old, needs to be more accessible for children with mobility challenges, and that a full replacement would cost between $80,000 and $100,000.
The PTO reported fundraising commitments so far: the after-school program pledged $8,000 and the PTO itself pledged $20,000. Presenters suggested modest program-fee adjustments or other fundraising steps could help close the gap and asked the council to consider convening committees (recreation, finance or planning) and working with the school district’s capital-improvements process.
Councilors praised the outreach, asked for equipment renderings and a clear list of the proposed improvements, and agreed to refer the request for committee review; the council voted unanimously to place the item on a committee agenda so members can examine funding options during budget planning.
What the council did: the council referred the playground request to the planning/finance process to consider municipal contributions during upcoming budget deliberations; no appropriation was approved at this meeting.
