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Playground Safety Progress Report - May 2000
Did you know that California is the first state in the nation to develop comprehensive minimum standards for playground safety? Here at Gomes we are working hard to make our playgrounds as safe as possible and to comply with the current California Safety Regulations. In order to meet this goal, the Playground Safety Committee has been working closely with the District to upgrade the 3rd & 4th and 5th & 6th grade area structures.
 This summer the 5th & 6th grade area will be replaced with a new play structure and safety surfacing, and will be accessible to students with disabilities.
Plans for  the 3rd & 4th grade area have been completed and we are currently negotiating with the District regarding the financing of this leg of the project. Construction could begin during the summer if additional funding became available for this project.
Additionally, committee chair Margaret Thomson is perusing a grant opportunity through the playground safety and recycling grant act program. This is a matching program of up to $25,000.00 for any one playground. To become eligible, the school must demonstrate its ability to provide a 50% match of the grant, use 50% of the grant funds for improvements with the use of recycled materials and the playground must have an inspection conducted by a certified playground inspector to determine the need to satisfy the regulations. Gomes appears to meet the eligibility requirements for participation as required by the California Integrated Waste Management Board.
The playground committee will continue to work closely with the facilities department and staff to explore all funding possibilities and proposals. The committee would like to thank Mr. Bold for his continued support and encouragement with this important project.
Playground Update - August 2000
Therese Gain, Director of Facilities, reports that work on the two playground projects has been delayed due to the contractor's bonding process. As much as we all would have liked to see the new equipment in place by today, it looks more like a mid-October completion date. Again, we are grateful to the district for their funding of both of these playgrounds at no cost to our school.
Playground Update - September 2000
Here is the latest timeline from the district's Facilities Management and Construction Office:
| September 26-October 6 |
Site Work |
| October 10 |
Asphalt |
| November 11-17 |
Install Equipment |
We apologize for the delay. In that the district is picking up the tab for these two projects, we are currently working with Therese Gain's office in order to upgrade the kindergarten, first and second play areas using our previous donations and One-Time Grant money. Blueprints of the current projects are on display in Gomes Hall.
For more information, please contact Playground Project Chair.
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