Work to remove the Arnold City Park playground will begin Sunday, after Parks and Recreation Department staff members found sections that were rotting, said Dave Crutchley, director of the department.
He said the entire playground was closed on Monday after a part of a bridge at the playground was roped off on Sept. 15, the first day of the annual Arnold Days festival, because a section of that bridge had collapsed.
After Arnold Days ended, parks department staff inspected the playground and discovered that the metal encased in rubber was rotting.
“We have had problems with the playground and have replaced numerous components of the playground,” he said. “When you look at it, it does not look bad, but when you get on it and step on sections, the whole thing is rotting.”
Crutchley said a group of volunteers from the First Baptist Church of Arnold will begin removing sections of the playground on Sunday.
He said there are no immediate plans to replace the playground.
City Administrator Bryan Richison said no capital improvement projects, such as replacing the playground, were included in the budget approved last month because he wants City Council and staff members to compile a wish list of improvements and determine how much the city will spend each year to complete them.
Crutchley said the council is expected to begin discussing potential capital improvement projects, including a possible playground replacement, during a work session on Oct. 12. Works sessions are typically held at 7 p.m. on the second Thursday of every month at City Hall, 2101 Jeffco Blvd.
“Hopefully, we will come to something, and we can get something put back in there for next summer,” Crutchley said. “That is my goal.”
Crutchley said the damage was likely caused by numerous floods throughout the years. The park is on Bradley Beach Road off Jeffco Boulevard near the Meramec River.
He said he has received many phone calls about the playground being closed with most residents understanding that something should have been done a while ago about the playground’s condition. They also want to see the playground replaced.
“I have faith we will do something,” Crutchley said. “It just happened last weekend, and we wanted to make sure no one got hurt.”