Papaianni Park Will Be Edison’s ‘Crown Jewel’ Says Mayor

EDISON, NJ — Mayor Sam Joshi recently announced three new projects the Township will undertake this year. Among them is the splash park and turf field in Papaianni Park.

Joshi said he proposes to transform Papaianni Park from disjointed pieces of area, to “Edison’s recreational crown jewel.”

The proposed splash park will include cultural artifacts reimagined as sprinklers, splash zones, and tipping buckets of water and will honor Edison’s diversity.

"It’s designed to celebrate Edison’s various cultures including cultural artifacts," Joshi said during his State of the Township address. "The splash park will center around a replica of the Edison tower. The diversity will be showcased with water fixtures such as a dragon, an elephant, or a Roman soldier to name a few."

Designed with families in mind, the splash park will include bathrooms with changing stalls. The park will be fully enclosed with a fence.

"The splash park will be fully enclosed with the fence, allowing our busy mothers and fathers to relax, knowing children can't stray too far. This splash park is tailored around young children," Joshi said.

The Mayor announced that the baseball diamond at Papaianni Park will be transformed into a turf diamond. Turf will be placed on Edison's Jets football field as well.

"Both of these locations will be available year-round for various sports," Joshi said.

Other improvements to the park will include a walking path with easy-to-read navigation signs connecting the entire park from municipal Boulevard to Central Avenue.

"Between our skatepark, turf fields, tennis courts, basketball courts, the lake walk, fishing Sculpture Garden, new gazebo, and regular events - we will encourage residents to spend a whole leisurely day there," Joshi said.

"I'm thankful for our relationships with Middlesex County, the state and federal officials for helping us minimize these taxpayer burdens for these capital improvements."

The Township is expected to break ground on the splash park and turf field early this summer.

(In the next few days, Patch will highlight each of the three new projects and provide more details)

Thank you for reading. Have a correction or news tip? Email sarah.salvadore@patch.com

Get breaking news alerts on your phone with our app. Download here. Sign up to get Patch emails so you don't miss out on local and statewide news.