Parks & Rec OK Penfield Beach for Playground Honoring Jessica Rekos

A playground celebrating the life of Sandy Hook victim Jessica Rekos will be built on Penfield Beach, where an existing swing set sits.  

The Parks and Recreation Commission voted unanimously Wednesday to accept the donation of the play scape from the New Jersey Firefighters Mutual Benevolent Association (NJFMBA).  

The NJFMBA is donating -- and coordinating the construction of -- a 2,600 square foot, handicap accessible play scape as part of the Sandy Ground Project. The initiative's mission is two-fold: to build 26 playgrounds as "living memorials" to the Newtown victims while sprucing up the Superstorm Sandy-ravaged coastline of Connecticut, New York, and New Jersey.  

"For the family -- it's an opportunity to have a tribute to a child they love and also to give a gift to a community that has been hit hard," NJFMBA President and New Jersey firefighter Bill Lavin said. For the community, he added, it's a chance to be part of honoring Newtown victims.  

Each family that lost a loved one in the Newtown shooting chose where they'd like the playground to go. Krista Rekos, mother of Jessica, requested Fairfield because she graduated from Fairfield University in 1999 and has many special memories of Fairfield, Lavin said.  

The Rekos requested the beach because Jessica loved orca whales.  

"How wonderful it would be if [the playground] could be near the water," Lavin said.  

And while most of the Parks and Recreation Commission echoed Lavins' sentiment, some beach area residents expressed concern about the already "overdeveloped" Penfield Beach area.  

Chuck Abercrombie, a Fairfield Beach Area Association member RTM District 10 representative, said while it's an honor to have the playground built in town, he cautioned the commission to look toward a "comprehensive plan" that takes into account work needed to fix Penfield Pavilion and the density of the neighborhood.  

Fair Acres Association President Ian Bass added that state and federal officials have warned coastal communities to stop building on beaches and that nonresidents would have to basically pay to visit the playground during summer months when a beach sticker is required to park near the beach.  

"Our hearts go out to the families of the victims of this horrible tragedy...there are plenty of non-beach locations in Fairfield where the playground would be more appropriate," Bass said.  

For those concerned with how much space the playground would use, Parks and Recreation Director Gerry Lombardo assured it would not encroach on beach area enjoyed by "sunbathers," as Lombardo put it. Its dimensions fit within the area already the site of the swing set.    

He added that construction of the playground and fixing Penfield Pavilion should not conflict. "It would have to be coordinated, but that can be worked out."  

When it came to a vote, commissioner Patti Dyer said she wasn't sure that the beach is the best location for the playground, and that she felt due diligence hadn't been done to select a site.    

But commissioner Barbara Rifkin pointed out that, "there are a lot of families who use this beach. This would be a terrific aspect for them."  

A construction start date has yet to be set, but the Fairfield University Class of 1999 is holding a fundraiser for the playground on Wednesday, June 26, at Gabrielle's Italian Steakhouse in Greenwich. For details, click here.