Maze Craze May Come Down at MCS

MIDDLE BURGH - After 37 years of fun and play, it may be the end of the Maze Craze Playground at Middleburgh elementary school.

A snow fence has been placed around the popular wooden playground that was built by the community in October 1989 after recommendations by a BOCES Health, Safety, and Risk committee and an insurance company.

The playground has been replaced by a new playground that opened last month behind the elementary school.

Demolition will only occur after the board has approved that work which will be done through a contractor, said MCS Superintendent Mark Place. There is no set date at this time.

"The board has not yet voted on that, but they understand the recommendations from the insurance company and health-safety risk," said Superintendent Place on Friday.

The playground was inspected by members of the BOCES committee and the Utica National Insurance company reported problems based on current safety standards.

Both groups recommended taking it down, Mr. Place told board members at their October meeting.

Demolition costs will be provided at the November school board meeting.

To celebrate the Maze Craze, board members agreed to establish an ad hoc committee to be made up of teachers, board members, community members, MidTel representatives, an alumni association member, and others.

The committee will decide how to celebrate the playground and its construction either by retaining pieces or another memorial.

Thus far, the committee will include buildings and grounds head John Youmans and board student member Aleah Becker. Other members will be named next month. MidTel will be contacted about a representative. MidTel was instrumental in the building of the playground in 1989.

The committee is to present a written recommendation to the school board at its December meeting.

The Maze Craze Memorialization Committee is to recommend how best to memorialize the Maze, honoring "its history, the community effort behind its creation, and the decades of memories for students and families alike."

Committee members will: review the history of the playground and its existing elements that could be part of that history, gather input from students, families, and the community, consider how the pieces designated for preservation by the board could be incorporated into a lasting memorial, and develop a recommendation that considers student safety, accessibility, and ongoing maintenance, and the future use of the space.

The final recommendations will be approved by the school board.

MCS to Return Plaque to Family

MIDDLEBURGH - Now that the Maze Craze playground is likely to come down, Middleburgh school officials will be returning a memorial plaque to the family of student Jeffrey Beretz who passed away in 1998.

A section of swings were dedicated to Jeffrey on the Maze and his sister, Sarah Welsh, asked the school board last week to return the plaque to the family.

"It would mean a lot to the family," she said.

A picture will be taken of the plaque before it is returned.