Waveny Soon to Debut New Fitness Area, New Playground Planned for Next Summer

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The construction of a widely anticipated addition to one of New Canaan’s most popular parks is underway. 

Earlier this year, town officials approved a $100,000 contract for the installation of a new fitness area in Waveny Park. 

The new fitness equipment, dubbed ‘The Gladiator’ by its manufacturer, is geared for people ages 13 and up, according to Ryan Restivo, assistant superintendent of the New Canaan Parks Department. 

It will have 12 stations including a larger component called “Thrive 250.” 

According to Restivo, the Thrive 250 has special QR code signs which, when using a phone to scan, provide a link to fitness instructions and workout plans. 

“There’s some step-by-step online workouts, so that’s a really cool feature,” Restivo said. 

The fitness area is to be resurfaced with a material called ‘Poured-in-Place Surfacing’ which Restivo said “is the best ADA compliant surfacing.” 

The Poured-in-Place Surfacing is what was used in the hugely successful and popular Mead Park Playground, he said. (Restivo is working with a committee that includes Monica Capela, who co-founded the Friends of Mead Park Playground with Allyson Mahoney, as well as Lauren Connolly Nussbaum and Hilary Ormond.)

“It’s like a spongy material and it comes in all different colors,” Restivo said of the surface. “The color that we chose was a tan and black and it blends in well with the site.” 

This type of surfacing has many advantages, Restivo said. 

“It’s the number one accessible surface, it’s safe and durable, it’s shock absorbent for fall protection, and it’s low maintenance and aesthetically pleasing, he said.

This new material replaces the woodchips used in the old fitness area. 

Credit: Ryan Restivo.

The Parks Department has already received the new fitness equipment but due to minor issues on the part of the manufacturers, the installation has been slightly delayed. 

“One of the posts had a manufacturer issue,” Restivo said. “We’re still waiting on them to get back to us. Once it is shipped to us it should probably take one day to install.”

In addition to new surfacing, “there’s going to be an ADA-compliant walkway that comes from that smaller parking lot closer to the Orchard softball field,” Restivo said. “We plan to have two handicapped parking spots there that connect to the walkway. Once this fitness area is complete, we’re going to get rid of the old fitness area.”

The Parks Department plans to remove the old fitness equipment to make way for another new park addition: children’s playgrounds.

“Come next year where that old fitness area is, we’re going to have a big playground,” Restivo said. “Right now we’re saving some money. There’s a

Construction underway in Waveny Park’s new fitness area. Credit: Ryan Restivo.

fundraising committee who’s raising money for the playground equipment.”

The new playground is expected to be installed next year. 

“The install would be not until like next summer, so August-ish,” Restivo said.

The new fitness area comes in response to safety concerns regarding the older area, said Restivo. “The old one was built years ago and it’s worn down. Some of the equipment has some safety concerns so there was some pressure to get rid of that one and build a new one,” he said.