Five Great Parks in Melrose

Summertime means taking the kids out to the park. But which one?

For this week's Patch Picks, we asked: What's your favorite park in Melrose? Here are our picks:

• , 82 Laurel St.: Any discussion of parks in Melrose begins with the Common. There's a sandbox, jungle gym, swings and two woodchip playgrounds; and the fenced-in paved area where little ones can ride their bikes and trikes.

• , 80 West Wyoming Ave.: Whether school's in session or not, the Lincoln School's playground always seems to have kids running around under the watchful eye of parents. There's, two playgrounds with swings, a jungle gym and a slide, along with a baseball field and basketball court.

• , Lebanon and Sylvan Streets: You're driving along Lebanon Street and poof: A cozy little park appears across from Wyoming Cemetery. One of the quieter parks in Melrose, Lebanon Park includes a swing set, basketball courts and a softball field. The woodchip playground is nestled right next to a beautiful wooded area.

• , Lynde and Malvern Streets: Named after Alderman Ken Foss, who fought private developers to preserve the park, Foss Park has a little something for everyone. There's a woodchip playground with swings, benches and picnic tables. On one side of the play-area sits a tee-ball field and on the other lies a basketball court.

• , 40 Damon Ave.: When the city dug up this park a few years back as part of the massive Ward 2 drainage project, they left it in better condition than they found it. The revamped park behind the Horace Mann School now has a new baseball field, multipurpose field and basketball court. There are two woodchip play areas with a jungle gym, swings, slides and a tire swing.