Amanda Forrester / news@whmi.com

Proposals regarding playground equipment at two Brighton elementary schools launched a broader discussion of accessibility for students.

During Monday’s meeting, the Board of Education discussed plans for playground equipment at Hawkins and Spencer elementaries.

The board has discussed Hawkins’ proposal during several previous meetings. The PTO for the school raised approximately $30,000 to help install new, more accessible equipment and redo the ground underneath.

The three bids supplied by MIdstates Recreation vary based solely on the ground covering. The cheapest option,$109,520, has wood chips, the middle option, $146,392, includes a mix of wood chips and rubber and the most expensive option, $187,574, would use only rubber.

The board ultimately decided the option that uses only rubber as the base would be the best option to ensure full accessibility to students in wheelchairs or with other differences in mobility, passing the motion unanimously.

The Spencer PTO has raised approximately $60,665 to build a new playground for the pre-kindergarten and kindergarten students at the school. The group said the new playground would offer younger students more age-appropriate options when outside.

The amount raised by the PTO would completely fund the equipment by Midstates Recreation, who submitted a proposal of $60,665.

During the discussion of the proposal, the question was raised of having the district absorb the extra cost and ensure the playground was fully accessible, possibly sharing a similar design to Hawkins.

Board members raised concerns that delaying a decision to ask the PTO if they would be open to a change in the proposal would mean students may not be able to use the equipment, adding that students that required more accessible options could go to Hawkins as no one currently at Spencer requires such equipment.

In response to that, other board members said the district has no way of knowing when a student would be attending Spencer that would need an accessible playground, and asking all parents of children requiring that to send their kids to Hawkins wasn’t always feasible, especially if there were multiple children attending the same school. They may also be able to have both playgrounds built over the summer and be ready for the next school year.

It was proposed that moving forward, the board would take into consideration a plan to make playgrounds fully accessible across the district as similar requests come in. This would ensure all students could use the playgrounds no matter what school they attend or if they are coming after school.

The discussion on Spencer was tabled until the PTO was able to give feedback.

The next Board of Education meeting is May 12.