I went to Kennedy Park with my friends for a picnic lunch this week and enjoyed the fresh air and sunshine. Kennedy Park, located in Fall River is a huge and beautiful park and most of it is very wheelchair accessible. I enjoy visiting this park at all times of the year.
The park has almost everything to offer such as tennis and basketball courts, baseball and soccer fields, a playground, a fountain, an ice skating rink, a pavilion, a perennial garden, a gazebo and even a pool. It also has a park building that has a nice and spacious restroom that is very wheelchair accessible with all the ADA guidelines.
We packed a picnic lunch and some drinks and enjoyed eating in the shade in the very spacious pavilion. The pavilion is wheelchair accessible and very spacious and it’s a nice place to escape the sun to eat lunch in. There are no tables or chairs so my friends sat on the steps and we all used our laps to hold our food.
There are benches throughout the park that one can rest at. The pavilion is often used during the warmer weather for bands and events so I understand why they may not want to place tables inside. Kennedy Park is also known for their great Fourth of July celebrations.
The grounds are beautiful and I always enjoy taking a stride thru the park on a nice sunny day. The fountain at times has running water that children often splash in to cool off on a hot summer day. Then in the winter, it is frozen over and used as an ice skating rink.
Towards the end of the park there is a very steep hill which does have a sidewalk leading to the pool which is called Healy Pool. This can be very dangerous for one traveling in a manual wheelchair because the slope is so steep. If you have an electric wheelchair, I think you will travel easier on the steep sidewalk. The pool looks beautiful and well maintained but it is not accessible.
I give Kennedy Park FOUR STARS. They could earn the Fifth Star simply by placing a pool lift into the pool so disabled can also use it to cool off and swim. As for the steep slope leading to the pool, I think they’ve made it as safe as they can by placing the sidewalk down the slope.