Please join fellow Belmont residents who love our outdoor spaces and recreational facilities for the launch weekend of Belmont Partners in Play.
- Sat, Jun 9, 8am – Community Walk – Lone Tree Hill, 251 Mill St (across from the Rock Meadow Conservation Land)
Join us for a lovely walk through Belmont’s newest conservation land, and meet other residents who care about the future of these important town resources. - Sat, Jun 9, 4pm – Playground Playdate – Joey’s Park, Cross St (near Winn Brook School)
Bring your kids and join us for a playdate at Belmont’s beloved (and endangered) Joey’s Park, and meet other residents who care about the future of these important town resources. - Sun, Jun 10, 7pm – Community Meeting – Belmont United Methodist Church, 421 Common St (enter from parking lot)
Join us for a meeting to discuss the future of these important town resources.
Belmont Partners in Play is a new “friends” organization created to promote the health and well being of Belmont residents by supporting safe and desirable parks and recreation facilities. Age, evolving safety standards and budget constraints threaten many of our parks and recreation facilities. Tennis Courts, playgrounds and our beloved Underwood Pool are just a few examples of where safety standards and required maintenance are outpacing town resources. We aim to raise the profile of recreation facilities in Belmont and create a private fundraising arm to assist in maintaining and enhancing these vital town resources.
By bringing together residents who enjoy and need our parks, open space, and recreation facilities, Belmont Partners in Play will provide an important and missing voice, volunteer base, and funding mechanism for these resources. Together we can preserve the magical places where children grow up, lives are led, and community happens.
Belmont Partners in Play is a new “friends” organization created to promote the health and well being of all Belmont residents by supporting safe and desirable parks and recreation facilities. In the new fiscal reality of the 21st century, cities and towns need to partner with private organizations and individuals who can help steward valuable town resources. In Belmont, we have friends organizations for our library, schools, senior center, athletic teams and arts programs; our parks and recreational facilities deserve a comparable support organization – hence, Belmont Partners in Play.
Many of Belmont’s parks and recreational facilities are threatened due to age, evolving safety standards, and budget constraints. In recent years, we have seen a number of indicators that these important gathering places do not receive the awareness, advocacy and funding they deserve:
- In May 2010, the proposed budget brought to Town Meeting included the demolition of the Grove Street tennis courts, which was narrowly averted by a few alert Town Meeting Members.
- In November 2011, three Belmont elementary school playgrounds failed safety inspections, leading to the sudden closure and temporary reopening of Joey’s Park (at Winn Brook) and the immediate demolition of the Butler Elementary School playground.
- In June 2012, the Underwood Pool will celebrate its 100th anniversary as the country’s first public swimming pool, but with age comes major vulnerability to breaks that cannot be repaired.
We aim to raise the profile of recreation facilities in Belmont and create a private fundraising arm to assist in maintaining and enhancing these vital resources. By bringing together residents who enjoy and need our parks and recreation facilities, Belmont Partners in Play will provide an important and missing voice, volunteer base, and funding mechanism for these resources. Together, we can plan for our future and preserve the special places that make Belmont the town we love.
To learn more, participate or volunteer in any Belmont Partners in Play programs, email bpip02478@gmail.com.
Coralie DiTommaso, Jane Fox, Crate Herbert and Ellen Schreiber
Belmont Partners in Play Co-Founders
