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Questions about Playground Removal in Williamsport

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. — There are a lot of questions in part of Williamsport after the city took down a playground and then fenced in the area, calling it a h...

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. -- There are a lot of questions in part of Williamsport after the city took down a playground and then fenced in the area, calling it a hazard.

A baseball complex, water park, basketball court, and now a condemned area that was a playground are all that stand in Williamsport's Memorial Park.

It's been almost two weeks since the city uprooted the only ADA-friendly playground in the area. This decision left usual park goers feeling upset.

"I was like, 'Why would they tear that down? It's a perfectly fine park,'" said Karter Solomon.

City officials deemed the playground to be unsafe and hazardous due to broken equipment. After it was removed, Newswatch 16 found that the city fenced the area and even put up signs warning of nitrogen. Those coming to the park were asked to avoid the play area until the city released its plan for a new project. That was the proposed idea until this week.

On Tuesday, the former playground in Memorial Park was fenced in with danger signs all over it. The fence is now gone, and the area has been covered in mulch for the time being.

This decision came with no announcement to the public and even Councilman Derek Slaughter, who is taking part in efforts to restore the playground, was left in the dark.

Kids attending a summer camp at the park on Wednesday were playing just a few feet away from the area that was fenced off due to hazardous conditions just a day before. We reached out to city officials to comment on the fence removal and plans for the park but our on-camera interview requests were denied until Mayor Gabe Campagna is back in town. We did receive a statement saying the city has applied for a $250,000 grant for a new playground.

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