LEBANON — Civic Memorial Park has been without a playground since 2022, after the 40-year-old structure was removed for safety reasons.

Now, the city is constructing a new playground at the Seminary Hill park to create space for “children of any ability” to swing, climb and explore, Recreation, Arts and Parks director Paul Coats said.

The playground will have “inclusive elements,” Coats said, such as accessible bucket-swings, on-the-ground features and a seated merry-go-round. Other features, all of which were voted on in a poll of Lebanon children, include a bridge with different pieces to climb and a slide.

There will be a volunteer build day Thursday to install it.

The community build day has two goals — to bring people together and save money on construction costs, Coats said. Volunteers will be divided into teams and assigned a piece of the playground to assemble and install.

After the volunteer day, concrete and paving material will be installed and the playground is expected to open sometime in May.

The project stems from a task force of the city and the nonprofit Friends of Lebanon Recreation, Arts and Parks that formed in 2023 to give the site a new-and-improved accessible playground.

The Friends of Lebanon Recreation, Arts and Parks, which was established to support the city’s department, launched a fundraising campaign for the Civic Park playground in 2024. So far, the group has raised about $266,000 from donors and recreation impact fees charged to new developments in Lebanon.

The friends group previously raised funds to install a new playground at Smith Field on Maple Avenue in West Lebanon and two playhouses in Colburn Park.

Coats said the group still has to raise more money for site preparation, including a new parking lot and pathway, but they are moving forward with the project as it reaches financial milestones.

“You can always wait for everything to be absolutely perfect and excellent, and sometimes there’s just value in getting there,” Coats said.

The playground equipment was purchased last fall and, more recently, the group raised enough money to cover the cost of paving material so they can move forward with the installation.

A 2023 New Hampshire law means the playground has to have a solid surface instead of loose material such as wood chips for accessibility reasons. It will be the first playground to meet this standard in Lebanon, Coats said.

The Lebanon Rotary Club donated $12,000 to the project and has helped to organize volunteers for the build day. Community Service Chairman Bruce Bergeron said the project “fits right in our alley” in terms of aligning with the Rotary Club’s mission to “support youth.”

“It’s a structure that will be used by many people over many years,” Bergeron said about the playground. He and about seven other Rotary Club members will help with the build day.

Bergeron said he also reached out to other groups to bring volunteers, such as the Upper Valley Rugby Club.

Jessie Fielding, president of one of the club’s teams, said she is excited for the group to “show up” for its community and “give back.”

“Rugby is all about community,” Fielding said.

She is excited to see how the playground comes together.

“I’ve seen some mock-ups of what it looks like and I think it’s going to be really fun and I’m very excited. I love public spaces and I love when there’s infrastructure that’s improved in those spaces,” she said.

Interested volunteers should email Coats at paul.coats@lebanonnh.gov. The volunteer day will be 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursday; volunteers can choose to participate for the morning, the afternoon or all day.

Clare Shanahan can be reached at cshanahan@vnews.com or 603-727-3216.