The playground at Union Ridge Elementary School in Ridgefield.
For those that feel writing to their local paper can’t effect change, look no further than this paper’s own editorial section.
A February Letter to the Editor in The Reflector written by Ridgefield resident Jon Cole has done just that, making the Ridgefield School District open its playgrounds to the public after school hours.
In the letter, Cole asked for as much.
“Affording access to playgrounds is not too much to ask for as bond proposals are presented repeatedly to accommodate population growth,” Cole asserted in his letter.
After the letter was published in the Feb. 13 edition of The Reflector, Ridgefield School District Assistant Superintendent Chris Griffith contacted the paper in order to connect with Cole. In an email, Griffith explained that the playgrounds weren’t locked up to bar the public on purpose, explaining that the gates were installed as part of security upgrades districtwide.
Griffith said that the gates, some of which have electronic security controls, were inadvertently set to remain locked at all times.
“While keeping the campus safe, it did not allow our community to access the grounds during weekends, non-school days, etc.,” Griffith wrote. “This was not our intent.”
Griffith said that he worked with the district maintenance staff in order to set the gates to be open after hours.
