SALISBURY, Md.- On any given sunny afternoon in Salisbury, plenty of kids in the neighborhood are out playing at Waterside Park. Now the city is hoping to improve and expand the park.
Through a $120,000 grant from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, the city says its looking to build multi-use playing fields, new signage and a 50-space parking lot. Those like Laverne Griffin that live around the corner say additional features will keep kids interested.
"But it also needs things for like kids that's like the age I said, 1-, 2- and 3-year-olds. More things for them to do because basically what they have out there is for the kids that are 5- and 6-years-old," Griffin said.
City Neighborhood Relations Manager Kevin Lindsay says it will give kids that need it - a place to go for fun.
"Rich kids explore. Poor kids border. So the kids that don't have resources, they need something to do and have the access to do it," Lindsay said. "And hopefully not get into other trouble that's out here in the community."
Lindsay says he hopes that those in the area will be able to explore other activities through these new additions that they might otherwise never have been able to do.
"It's opportunity. So you see out here we have the basketball court and that's great, but not everyone plays basketball. So having a football field out here gives people more choices," Lindsay said.
Griffin says she thinks it could become an attractive area for the kids on her street.
"I think it would be a great place for them if it were built up better," Griffin said.
The Salisbury City Council needs to accept the grant over the next few weeks in order to continue with the project. The city says it will contribute an additional $15,000 to the project on top of the grant funding for stormwater management upgrades. It says work is scheduled to begin at Waterside Park in summer 2019.
