Winter months tend to be a slower time in parks, which makes a great time for maintenance projects. Aberdeen Lake Park has undergone a number of projects over the past few months to get it ready for the heavier use that comes in the spring and summer months, said the Town of Aberdeen in its newsletter.
The largest and most notable project is the replacement of the playground. The old train playground structure was 16 years old and had reached the end of its life cycle. It has now been replaced with an updated, brand-new structure. Key changes to the new structure include shade canopies and poured-in-place surfacing replacing the old mulch. The swings, which were added much more recently than the old playground, were kept for this project with new surfacing being poured to keep a level, appropriate height for the swing level.
Rendering via Town of Aberdeen.
Other projects completed have helped to cut down brush, reestablish plant beds around the park, as well as clean up parking lot areas. The brush separating the park from U.S. 1 was cut down in spring 2023, and this project has continued throughout the winter along the walking trail and the lake, with a brush along the trail’s edge being cut back to better open up the walking space, as well as board replacement along footbridges. Plant beds, trees, and bushes have also been worked on to clean up the look and feel of the park. Ground coverage has also been improved between the lower parking lot and the lake, and the area around the playground with the change in footprint.
Staff will continue with park touches as we get close to spring. The trail will continue to be removed of debris, culverts cleared to allow for passage of water runoff, and initial blowing and edging will be completed to get on top of the growing season. Similar work will continue at the other five parks the town maintains, as well as the Malcom Blue Farm, for which maintenance is currently contracted out.
“The Parks & Recreation Department is happy to receive any feedback or requests from citizens as we hope to continue to offer quality outdoor resources for our community,” said the town.
Feature photo: Aberdeen Lake/Abegail Murphy/Sandhills Sentinel.
Contributed.
