Winnipeg councillor calls for changes to how school playgrounds are paid for

Following a 10-day task force to find a new way to pay for playgrounds in Winnipeg, a city councillor has released a report highlighting what they think needs to change.

Coun. Brian Mayes (St. Vital) released a report Thursday showing options for how new playgrounds could be funded and how older playgrounds could be replaced.

Currently, there is no funding from either the provincial government or the City of Winnipeg to build playgrounds, and the financial burden falls on parent committees who have to find hundreds of thousands of dollars in funding.

“I met a lot of parents and a lot of them expressed frustration with having to go out and do cookie dough sales,” said Mayes. “They’re not going to raise a half million dollars or $200,000 doing that. So we got to be more realistic.”

Following the task force meetings, Mayes outlined potential changes.

He is calling on the provincial government to set aside funding for play structures when all new schools that include grades K-5 are built. He said this could account for one per cent of the total school construction cost.

If the province is unable to do that, he feels parent committees should at least have easy access to grant programs and playground suppliers to streamline the process.

Mayes also wants funding to be put aside every year by the province, city, and school boards that would go toward playground renewal for structures that hit the 20-year mark.

“If each division put in $50,000 and the city tried to match for each division and the province, then you only need to do one or two in each division a year.

“There are two or three new schools that have been built without them, the province needs to deal with that. But as they age out, I think there’s a role for school divisions for sure and for the city.”

Mayes noted this is not one person’s or administration’s fault; rather, it’s a long-standing issue in the city and province.

If changes aren’t made, he feels inequities will continue to develop across the city and hurt children coming up through the school system.

In an emailed statement to CTV News, Education and Early Childhood Learning Minister Tracy Schmidt said the government understands the importance of playgrounds and how they can help children develop.

“We are always happy to hear ideas about improving kids’ well-being through play and we look forward to reviewing the report,” said Schmidt.

She noted the province has already committed $100,000 each to a pair of schools in Winnipeg to build new playgrounds.

Mayes plans on moving a motion at the Riel Community Committee on Friday and will ask the city to provide a report on all playgrounds on or near school property and their current condition.