Lee — In less than a year, kiddos will be bouncing around a new playground in town. Neighborhood Ninjas founder Alex Katz addressed the Lee Select Board on November 5 via Zoom, receiving approval for a new banner three feet tall by eight eight feet wide to be attached to the Lee Athletic Field fence, with the signage boasting the coming of the NinjaFit Lee Outdoor Obstacle Course Playground that is slated for a mid-2025 opening. Staples office supplies store has agreed to sponsor all banners and signage associated with the project moving forward, Katz said.
The dais also unanimously approved a fee waiver for the organization.
During Lee’s Town Meeting in May, voters approved $80,000 of funding from Community Preservation Committee appropriations for a skate park expansion and Ninja Warrior, or obstacle, course. According to Katz, the cost of a Ninja obstacle course ranges from $250,000 to $280,000, with Lee’s project to include $50,000 ($40,000 playground deposit and $10,000 as the Neighborhood Ninjas fee) of the total allocated this past spring. The balance needed to complete the project will derive from company or individual sponsorships, donations, fundraising events, and grants.
Given the sample course set up at this year’s Founder’s Day Weekend, Katz said she is planning for the project’s official ribbon cutting to coincide with the annual event in 2025. “We really enjoyed being a part of [Founder’s Day Weekend] this year,” she said.
Town Administrator Christopher Brittain said he and Katz have entertained some initial conversations about the program and will be coming back to the Select Board with updates. Katz said she anticipates the community to join in building the project during the weekend of September 6.
At the meeting, the Select Board unanimously approved a proclamation naming October 22, 2024, as “Virginia Delugan Day” in celebration of the resident’s 100th birthday as a “cherished member” of the community, Chair Gordon Bailey said.
In other matters, Select Board members approved appointing Fire Chief Ryan Brown as the town’s Regional Task Force representative to the Southern Berkshire Emergency Medical Services Regionalization Study and teenager Keaghan Kline to the Lee Youth Commission.
