Community Corner
New Booth Playground Opens In Foxborough
Following a ribbon-cutting ceremony, dozens of children had the opportunity to use the new Foxborough playground for the first time.
FOXBOROUGH, MA — The Foxborough Recreation Department opened the new Booth playground with a ribbon-cutting ceremony in front of dozens of children and their families last Thursday. Town meeting voters in May approved covering $85,000 of the playground's cost.
The playground ended up costing more than $110,000. Robert Kraft's, the Partners in Patriotism Fund, chipped in to pay for the rest, along with the Lions Club, Rotary Club and Bethany Church.
The old playground was removed in the spring after Foxboro Recreation learned that all of its playground pieces were outdated to the point they couldn't be brought to modern safety standards and were not handicapped-accessible.
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Following the ceremony, dozens of children had the opportunity to use the playground for the first time. Partners in Patriotism chair Jimmy McGowan said seeing the kids using the new playground was a "special experience."
"Playgrounds are an important element of the Foxborough community," McGowan said. "The PIP Fund was pleased to be able to assist Foxboro Recreation in funding the new Booth playground."
Find out what's happening in Foxboroughfor free with the latest updates from Patch.
The Booth complex has three Little League fields, a Babe Ruth Field, two softball fields and basketball and tennis courts. When the town got the money it needed to build the playground, Friends of Foxboro Recreation president Donna McIntyre told Patch the new playground will bring back a popular place for siblings of ball players to play during games. It will also be used for summer programs next year, which serve over 300 children.
The new playground includes a rubber foundation accessible to children of all abilities and updated equipment featuring accessible tire swings, jungle gyms and climbing areas. During the planning process, Foxboro Recreation worked closely with the Foxboro Commission on Disability and the Massachusetts Office on Disability to ensure the new playground will be a place where all children can play.
It replaces a playground that was at the Booth for over 20 years before being taken down last Spring.
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