CHESTER SPRINGS, PA — A planned accessible-playground overhaul at Pine Creek Park could relocate a township-supported memorial created after a local couple lost their week-old son, setting up a dispute over how West Pikeland Township balances accessibility and safety requirements with preserving Cayden’s Corner.
The memorial sand play area opened Dec. 16, 2023, in memory of Cayden Leithead, the son of township residents Ryan and Denise Leithead. Cayden died a week after his birth in December 2022.
Ryan Leithead worked with the township on the memorial, which remains identified on West Pikeland’s parks page as part of Pine Creek Park at 1488 Yellow Springs Road in Chester Springs.
Its location is now in question as the township advances a broader playground renovation. A preliminary design contemplates moving the sandpit and replacing its existing dedication sign, though final plans have not been released.
Township officials have indicated that Cayden’s Corner sits within the fall zone for a swing set and that keeping the sandpit in its current location would constrain efforts to redesign the playground for safety and accessibility.
The possible relocation became public during an Aug. 17 township meeting. Leithead has objected to moving the memorial and says his family was not directly notified about the proposal before learning of it.
He is seeking an opportunity for the family to participate in the planning process before the township settles on a final design.
The issue has since drawn community attention, with residents organizing an effort to preserve Cayden’s Corner ahead of the Board of Supervisors’ Sept. 8 meeting. Supervisors have expressed differing views on the issue.
The dispute comes as West Pikeland moves forward with a substantially funded redevelopment of the playground.
The township reported in January that it had received a $231,900 grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources toward a project estimated at $300,000. More than $65,000 has also been raised privately.
According to the state grant description, the project calls for parking improvements, new playground equipment and safety surfacing, stormwater measures, ADA access and landscaping.
West Pikeland’s fundraising page describes the project as a fully accessible playground and displays three preliminary images.
The renovation is expected to be completed around mid-2027, but the Board of Supervisors must approve the project and final plans have not been made public.
The township’s Parks and Recreation Committee is scheduled to meet Sept. 3. An agenda had not been posted as of the latest check.
The disagreement leaves officials confronting competing considerations before the project moves forward: providing an accessible playground that meets modern safety requirements while determining whether those objectives can be achieved without substantially altering a memorial the township helped establish less than three years ago.
More information about the playground project is available at https://www.westpikeland.com/pinecreekparkplayground.
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