Where do you want a splash pad? Tell us.
Kate Sayre’s petition to build a splash pad in Chapel Hill is really exciting. Kudos to this fine resident – we look forward to years of Super Soaker battles with her once we have a splash pad in place!
Almost 1000 people have signed the petition so far. We cannot wait to take the smallest members of the Triangle Blog Blog squad to a splash pad in town.
Currently, we drive to Durham, Pittsboro or Mebane to visit their amazing splash pads. Having one nearby will reduce our car travel AND make it easier to go to the splash pad more frequently.
But where should a splash pad in Chapel Hill or Carrboro go?
At Triangle Blog Blog, many of us are planners – so naturally, we’re thinking about factors like:
- Transportation (and access to existing public bus lines for families without cars)
- Equity (The splash pad should be located so that children in all parts of town can access it.)
- Utilities – You need to have water, wastewater lines, and power to have a splash pad!
Other considerations, according to this helpful guide for pre-planning a splash pad, include water table considerations, access to bathrooms and sidewalks, permits and zoning, and having a visible location.
We also need to decide whether Chapel Hill wants one massive splash pad or a few smaller splash pads spread throughout the town. For instance, is it better to have one super large mega splash pad at Community Center Park, or three smaller splash pads at Hargraves Community Center, Homestead Park, and Southern Community Park? Or should it go somewhere else entirely?
We don’t know.
The Town of Chapel Hill has put together a list of 11 possible locations (they’re not listed, though they say some are parks and others are on town-owned land.) They also published an RFQ for a Splash Pad Feasibility Analysis and Report.
We’re now activating our “Splash Pad Location Activation Tracker (SPLAT).” We want to know: Where do you want a splash pad? Tell us.
We’ll then take your suggestions and analyze them along the various factors we mention above, using things like Census-tract data and dot plots and all sorts of maps and then report back in a future post — and also share with the town.
Happy Splashing!