As posted in the Willow Grove Public Spirit by Montgomery Media on Thursday, October 8, 2009
By Amanda Glensky
Staff Writer
"At Hatboro’s Tanner Park on Jacksonville Road, the installation of 2,100 pavers will mean more than just a new walkway, it will be a new playground, a repaved basketball court and a Saturday afternoon picnic spot, according Hatboro officials.
Hatboro Council Sept. 28 approved plans to install the Tanner Memorial Walkway, a project three years in the making that will raise funds for upgrades and new facilities in Tanner Park.
Community members can purchase pavers for $50 and have them engraved with names or personalized messages. Local organizations will donate both the pavers and engravings, meaning all proceeds will finance park revitalization efforts.
The Hatboro-Horsham Kiwanis Club, Elm Street Hatboro and the Village Players are supporting the project with assistance from the borough.
This is an important project because it will benefit the local children, said president of the Elm Street committee, John Farnen. The playground at Tanner Park is hardly what you would call a playground at this point, he said.
According to plans, the estimated $327,000 project includes a paved and relined basketball court, a relocated and resurfaced baseball field, a new gravel path that loops around the park, the memorial walkway, a picnic area and landscaping.
Plans also include two new playgrounds, one geared for 2 to 5-year-olds, and the other for 5 to 12-year-olds. Both will be handicapped accessible.
Work will begin on the playgrounds once the walkway is complete, Farnen said.
“Tanner Park is a small pocket park in kind of an obscure portion of Hatboro and it is a park with a lot of history,” said vice president of the Hatboro-Horsham Kiwanis Club, Tom McMackin. “We have identified that it needs some community support. We’re there to do what we can to make life better for people in the surrounding area.”
The Kiwanis Club is financing the pavers and installation of the walkway with funds the organization raised this year, he said.
Officials said construction will begin this month to lay the pavers in a path from the Hatboro Village Players parking lot to Springdale Avenue. About 125 to 130 people have already purchased pavers, and they can continue to buy even after all are installed in the ground, McMackin said.
“I think it’s a good opportunity to memorialize something that’s precious to them as well as making an improvement for the children of Hatboro,” he said.
The engravings are being donated by Designs and Stone, the company of Hatboro Councilwoman Nancy Guenst, who is also the treasurer of the Elm Street committee.
“I think it’s a wonderful project. We’ve been trying to revitalize Tanner Park for awhile now,” Guenst said. “I hope the community continues to support it by purchasing bricks for the walkway because all of the money raised is going to go to upgrades to the park. It’s a small little pocket park but it’s very important to that area of the Hatboro community because there are a lot of young families.”
The borough recently added pieces of new playground equipment, repaved the basketball courts and removed unsafe equipment, officials said.
One of the major contributions to the project came from Charles and Joan Shorday of Hatboro, who were recognized by the borough council at a special meeting Sept. 14 for donating $10,000 to revitalize Tanner Park.
Hatboro Federal Bank was also a large contributor, McMackin said."
If you would like more information on Tanner Park or to purchase an engraved paver, please contact John Farnen at 215-672-3935.
