Town of Hempstead Supervisor Richard Guardino was joined by Councilman Joseph Ra and Councilwoman Linda Reed as he formally opened two modern playgrounds in the Department of Parks and Recreation's Franklin Square Park District. The play areas are located at Rath Park on Fenworth Boulevard in Franklin Square and Garden City South Community Park on Nassau Boulevard in Garden City Park.

"The children of the Franklin Square Park District received the new recreation areas as a direct result of a $23 million Capital Park Improvement Bond approved by the Town Board in 1996," said Supervisor Guardino. "The bond issue was passed in order to rehabilitate town parks, many of which are over three decades old. From the $23 million, we allocated approximately $515,432 at Rath Park to rebuilding the playground, sidewalks, benches and tennis courts. $367,622 was used to rehabilitate the play equipment at Garden City South Community Park."

Councilwoman Linda Reed said, "Work on the playgrounds began in November of 1997 and was concluded this July. Only Long Island companies were contracted by the Town Board to build the playgrounds."

Vitricon Company of Hauppauge installed a unique rubber safety surface called Vitriturf beneath all the play equipment area. Vitriturf is a poured rubber flooring which is used throughout the nation in various recreation venues. Its thickness is determined by the height of the apparatus above it. Typically the depth of rubber is from three to three and one-half inches.

"Each park's playground has two separate modular pieces of apparatus designed for two distinct age groups - one for toddlers and the other for children five to 10-years-old," said Supervisor Guardino, who is also the parent of a young daughter. "Impact forgiving plastic products are used throughout the apparatus. The decking is made of a composite plastic wood which is splinter free. The metal skeletal frame is specially coated so it will not rust and thus always provide a smooth nonabrasive finish. Moms and dads should be assured that the design of the play equipment meets all standards set by the American Society of Testing Materials and the Consumer Product Safety Commission."

Rath Park tennis players will also benefit from the improvement bond with refurbished courts on Benris Ave. According to Councilman Joseph Ra, "The old court was plagued by a series of recurring cracks and holes. A cost effective geotextile grid was used to strengthen and stabilize the ground in order to apply the new court surface."

Franklin Square Chamber of Commerce President Dr. Stuart Shapiro expressed the sentiment of many members of the community by saying, "We are very pleased to have these new playgrounds for our children to safely enjoy. It's a definite plus for our community."