Playgrounds are one of those things that never get old. Some of my best memories as a kid were on a playground, so this new one is super exciting for your children.

Payson Park has always been one of the primary playgrounds in Portland, Maine, and now it's officially approved for a facelift, ninja warrior style!

After years of receiving feedback about what needs to be upgraded throughout all 48 acres of it, and months of bidding and negotiating, Payson's Park is now finally ready to move forward with suggested renovations.

As early as the end of this month, August, or latest by September this year, according to portlandcivilspace.com, the park is looking to add these new "ninja warrior-like" amenities:

  • play structures and a swing set for older children (ages 5-12) (see images labeled "5-12" for equipment type)
  • A play house, climbing house with slide, spring rocker teeter totter, and rope walk play structure for younger children, with 2 bay swing
  • ages 13+ agility equipment circuit for older visitors outside of the fenced play area.

That last one? That's the new ninja warrior-style agility equipment that's been highlighted by the Portland Parks, Recreation & Facilities Department, amongst the other mentioned upgrades and changes.

Close by you'll find the Back Cove Trail (one of my favorites to walk and talk with my friends) if that's more your style.

Did you know Payson Park is actually super historical to Portland, Maine?

Back in 1916, this playground was named after Edward Payson whose brother sold the entire ground to the city of Portland. It then became the primary "recreation" spot in Portland... cool.

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Every beach town has its share of pluses and minuses, which got us thinking about what makes a beach town the best one to live in. To find out, Stacker consulted data from WalletHub, released June 17, 2020, that compares U.S. beach towns. Ratings are based on six categories: affordability, weather, safety, economy, education and health, and quality of life. The cities ranged in population from 10,000 to 150,000, but they had to have at least one local beach listed on TripAdvisor. Read the full methodology here. From those rankings, we selected the top 50. Readers who live in California and Florida will be unsurprised to learn that many of towns featured here are in one of those two states.

Keep reading to see if your favorite beach town made the cut.

 

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