Playground removed is ‘last straw’ for neighbors of closed Warwick school

It’s the final kick in the teeth for some residents in Warwick as the one good thing left over from a closed elementary school was taken away earlier this week.

The playground at Wickes Elementary School in Warwick was removed because it was an eyesore that was riddled with graffiti. All that’s there today is a patch of dirt.

The school closed its doors last year as part of the district’s consolidation efforts.

Once the School Department shut the building down, it was transferred over to the city, where the grounds are maintained by the city, according to Warwick Ward 7 Councilman Stephen McAllister.

McAllister said he was unaware that the playground equipment was removed until the project was finished, but is supportive of the plan to put the equipment to better use.

“They’re taking it down we’re going to clean it up, we’re going to obviously replace the graffiti, and then we’re going to repurpose it in other parts of the city,” McAllister said. “We don’t want it to just sit there and rot away.”

For many residents, the removal of the playground is the final straw, as the property has become a magnet for trouble in the area at night.

The playground was regularly used by families in the area, and now that’s been taken away.

“Little kids would come here with their parents, they would play. People come over here,” said Michael Pella-Sabourin, who lives next door to the school. “It was a great environment, very family-orientated.”

“That was the one positive thing left at that school,” said neighbor Cheryl Derobbio. “[It’s] kind of a disaster.”

With the playground now gone, neighbors say it’s the last straw. 

Broken glass covers the blacktop, graffiti is on the building, and neighbors don’t think the city is doing a good job at all taking care of the property that’s nestled into a residential area.

Since the school closed down, it’s been a magnet for trouble.

“I don’t think its safe for my children. I don’t think its safe for other children,” Pella-Sabourin said.

“Two nights ago there were about three police cars with flashlights walking around the building,” Derobbio said.

Even Councilman McAllister admits that there’s trouble with vandalism and break-ins at the school.

“A year ago they set off some fire extinguishers and stuff like that and made a real mess inside the building,” he said. “There’s not a lot of light behind there so there’s actually been a couple of break-ins in the school.”

Now residents are demanding that something is done with the property, and they want to see it repurposed into something that’s beneficial for the entire community.

McAllister said no plans are in place to do anything with Wickes Elementary at this time.