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In the summer of 2023, the Sudbury Public Schools District was pulling out all the stops to complete the Curtis Outdoor Wellness Space (COWS) in time for the 2023-2024 school year. The project was a priority for the district and for members of Ephraim Curtis Middle School community. Between the required bidding process and the fact that temperatures had to stay warm enough to pour the surface of the playground, it proved to be too tall of an order at the end of 2023.
Fast forward to the late spring of 2024, and the playground officially opened to the public. Additional landscaping work will be completed at a later date, and the school district is considering adding additional equipment. But the core of the project is now complete.
The playground was initially called the Curtis Outdoor Wellness Space. It was later referred to as the Curtis Outdoor Health and Wellness space by the district, though many residents just refer to it as the Curtis playground.
The playground was funded primarily by Community Preservation Act dollars. It was first proposed to Sudbury’s Community Preservation Committee (CPC) with a request for $480,000 in late 2022. With their support, it went on the warrant for Annual Town Meeting in May of 2023, and was passed by residents. The Select Board and the Finance Committee also supported passage of the article.
The original proposal to the CPC emphasized accessibility, inclusion and use by residents of all ages:
This newly proposed safe and accessible outdoor space would promote social connection and address the emotional and physical needs of 850 middle school students, as well as the broader community.”
Page 2 — COWS CPC Application
The playground features an obstacle course, climbing structures, swinging benches and multiple picnic tables.
The poured rubber surface can be found throughout the playground. Swinging benches and picnic tables can be found clustered along the side closest to the nearby vegetation, which buffers the space from the parking lot area along with a pre-existing wooden guardrail.
On the end closest to the basketball hoops, users will find multiple gaga ball pits buffered by some taller shade trees.
Landscaping work will happen in the fall. Superintendent Brad Crozier has already indicated that they’re eyeing some umbrellas for the picnic tables, and perhaps additional picnic tables. He characterized the work in the fall as finishing touches. (32:32) Sudbury Public Schools School Committee Chair Nicole Burnard noted that she observed 25 to 30 kids using the playground on a recent weekend.