Greenfield’s parks come in different shapes and sizes and with individual features that make them appealing for different kinds of activities.
Go to the Greenfield Recreation Department’s website and you’ll find plenty of options for all kinds of active and passive outdoor recreation. Of that impressive list, there are 10 places that have “park” in their names.
At one of the parks, Green River Park, a project — long overdue in our opinion — is getting underway, breathing new life into the space.
Improvements planned for the park off Petty Plain Road, and accessible from Deerfield Street by a foot bridge, are substantial. Long a place used for recreational softball, the park is undergoing a transformation that should entice more people to discover the park and what is happening there.
It will be the site of the town’s first dog park, where canines and their humans can socialize and interact in an enclosed area. As Mayor William Martin said early in the town’s effort to get this project rolling:
“We are extremely fortunate to have not only found a site most are satisfied with for a dog park, but also have the opportunity to improve another neighborhood park.”
Along with the enclosed area for dogs, the park will also get the town’s first outdoor pickleball court, a pavilion, and renovated basketball court, playground and parking area.
Attention is also being paid to make the park and its features fully accessible. Once completed, the work, with an estimated price tag of $627,872, should provide Greenfield residents with another outstanding green space.
We say “another” because it is clear that the community understands the importance of its many parks and the need to keep on top of upkeep and improvements. That’s why, for example, Greenfield officials and others worked to secure money for the park, getting a state Parkland Acquisitions and Renovations for Communities grant and money from the Stanton Foundation that goes specifically toward the dog park.
And it’s just one example. The Greenfield Energy Park this week is finally getting a new play structure train, as well as two additional benches. The work replaces a wooden structure that had deteriorated with use and age. While a much smaller and easier project than what’s happening at Green River, it shows Greenfield’s commitment to its parks and other outdoor spaces.
Residents should be pleased that Greenfield officials see the value of keeping the green in Greenfield and share a desire to see its parks flourish.