By Stephen Appezzato
FAIR HAVEN – Borough officials in Fair Haven have their sights set on constructing a new inclusive playground with help from the Jake’s Law program.
The governing body is pursuing a project to replace an aging playground at McCarter Park. If approved, a bulk of the roughly $1.1 million price tag could be covered by the state.
According to Fair Haven Parks and Recreation director D.J. Breckenridge, the existing main playground at McCarter Park, located across from Sickles School, is more than 20 years old. The play area gets extensive use by students during recess, after-school programs and summer camp. Replacing it has been on the borough’s radar for a few years.
Last fall, council member Kristen Hoey became aware of the Jake’s Law program and found it could cover much of the cost of the playground.
“It really worked out well that we were already looking into potentially replacing the playground there, and this is a really nice opportunity to do so and make sure that it’s inclusive and some- thing that will be able to be enjoyed by everybody in the area,” Breckenridge said.
Currently, there are two main play areas at McCarter Park – a section for children 2 to 5, which was renovated a few years ago and will not be changed, and the main playground, which has swing sets, two play structures and other features.
According to a cost estimate on the borough’s website, the inclusive playground, which contains accessible equipment; so-called “unitary” or smooth, shock-absorbing playground surfacing; perimeter fencing and more, would total about $1,122,000. If all goes according to plan, state funds could cover up to $750,000.
New Jersey’s Jake’s Law was signed into law in 2018 and serves as a program for the state to encourage the construction of inclusive playgrounds designed with standards in line with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Operated under New Jersey’s Green Acres program, the intention of Jake’s Law is to provide children of all physical and neurodiverse abilities access to recreational amenities. The program was named after Jake’s Place, a playground in Cherry Hill built in honor of Jacob Cummings-Nastro, who died from heart surgery complications at 21⁄2 years old.
To obtain Jake’s Law funding, towns must adhere to a lengthy application process that emphasizes public participation and input.
“It makes sense because you don’t want to give a town grant funding and then there isn’t support for it, or residents don’t like it,” Breckenridge said. “There are multiple iterations of public feedback here, which are really important,” he added.
Breckenridge said last year the borough gauged feedback from the Fair Haven PTA, the recreation committee, Sickles School and the public through an online survey about what playground elements residents wanted and features they liked from certain play apparatuses – as well as what they didn’t like.
“We took all that information from all three of those groups and that’s how we came up with the most updated playground rendering,” he said. The rendering can be found on the borough’s website.
The next step in Fair Haven’s Jake’s Law project is a public hearing scheduled for Jan. 27, when residents can learn more about the proposal and have time to voice opinions and preferences.
At the meeting, Breckenridge will review “how we’ve gotten here” as well as what’s to come before the borough council votes on a resolution allowing the borough to apply for the grant. A similar hearing will occur in Red Bank Jan. 23 as that borough council presents its inclusive playground proposal for Marine Park, which will replace the existing play area with an estimated $2.28 million project. The public is encouraged to attend the meeting to learn more about the proposal and provide comments.
Fair Haven and Red Bank will join multiple other area towns that pursued Jake’s law funding last year.
In Little Silver, borough officials set their sights on overhauling Sickles Park to create an inclusive play area. According to council president Christopher Faherty, Little Silver received its Jake’s Law funding and will have another public meeting Jan. 21 to discuss the proposal, answer questions and solicit feedback from residents. If it moves forward, Faherty said work on Sickles Park could start this summer and conclude in the fall.
In Oceanport, another town that pursued Jake’s Law funding last year for Blackberry Bay Park, borough administrator Donna Phelps said construction could start this summer as well.
The article originally appeared in the January 16 – 22, 2025 print edition of The Two River Times.
