East Shore Unitarian Church has wanted to rebuild a welcoming, accessible playground since the old playground had to be removed back in the dark days of COVID. A groundswell of interest from church families together with staff and others in this community banded together and, on June 26th, received formal approval from the Board of Trustees to form a Playground Task Force.
The Playground Task Force is now fully engaged and working quickly to design, fund, and build a playground on the church campus in alignment with East Shore’s mission and values!
Members of the the Playground Task Force include:
- Heather Lantz-Brazil (Task Force Lead)
- Lisa Richards
- Bill Richards
- Lauren Crowder
- Doug Strombom
- Martin Cox (Board Liaison)
- Amanda Uluhan (RE Director and Staff Liaison)
East Shore strives to center children, families, and youth in everything we do, and we feel strongly that a new playground, designed to be accessible to all, from people with a variety of disabilities to elders, will advance our church’s mission of building community, promoting justice, exploring spirituality, and practicing love. A church playground is more than just a swing set or slide; it has the potential to become a vital third gathering space, fulfilling many aspirations of the East Shore community.
The mission statement of the Playground Task Force is:
“We envision a natural outdoor playground and gathering space which can benefit the entire East Shore Congregation by offering outdoor learning, play, and community space committed to accessibility and access for all abilities and ages.”
The Playground Task Force will establish the overall project’s scope, approach, and timeline, while also exploring financing and revenue opportunities. We will evaluate feasibility, gain support, design, and oversee the development of a playground that meets the needs of our many stakeholders. This comprehensive effort will encompass requirements and feasibility analysis, improving accessibility to and within the playground area, surveying, site planning, regulatory and code compliance, grading, landscaping, and the selection and construction of playground equipment and pathways.
The members of the Playground Task Force want everyone in the community to know that we will reach out to gather your ideas, opinions, and support.
The timing is paramount because the church has entered into negotiations with a child care organization seeking to become long-term tenants in East Shore’s R.E. Building. Our potential tenant needs a playground and entered into negotiations expecting to fund, plan, and build a playground as part of the deal with East Shore. The church with members of the Playground Task Force have entered into discussions with the potential tenant that have been promising. The potential tenant has requirements and funding, and East Shore has requirements and funding, so we anticipate a happy joint effort that should yield a mutually beneficial outcome.
Building an inviting, inclusive, accessible playground that meets the needs of both East Shore and our potential child care tenant is a complex project. Fortunately we are blessed with several task force members with extensive professional experience relevant to playground development and community project management. Further, our potential childcare tenant has experience building play areas for their child care centers and solid finances.
The Playground Task Force wants you to know that we are committed to hearing and including the voices of everyone in the community with interest in this effort, the process, and the outcome. Stay tuned for more updates from the Playground Task Force as we pursue this vision and mission. Meanwhile, feel free to reach out to the task force leader, Heather Lantz-Brazil, to Doug Strombom, to Amanda Uluhan, or to me Martin Cox ([email protected]) if you would like to see our charter (approved July 24, 2025), or notes, or any part of our plans and research. Thanks!
Martin Cox (Board Liaison to the Playground Task Force)