Wayland Patch 7/17/12: Permaculture Garden Growing at Hannah Williams. Some day soon a trip to Hannah Williams Playground could include some fresh- from-the-branch, free strawberries along with plenty of playtime. On Saturday, a group of 10 volunteers spent about four hours landscaping and planting a permaculture-style garden, the Hannah Williams Ecological Food Garden, along the back edge of Wayland's Hannah Williams Playground.

Wayland Town Crier 6/18/12: Ecological Food Garden coming to Wayland playground. The innovations to the Hannah Williams Playground are not yet at an end. Soon the popular, newly renovated playground will sport another feature that will draw the curiosity of residents – an Ecological Food Garden.

Wayland Town Crier 4/4/12: PHOTOS: Reopening of Hannah Williams playground. In spite of early morning glum weather, a good turnout of children squealed with delight rushing onto the new equipment following a ribbon cutting ceremony reopening Wayland’s Hannah Williams playground. Department of Public Works Director Don Ouellette told the hearty crowd the parking area paving and the sand play area would be completed shortly. The new design unites what formerly were two parts, and adds a water fountain.

Wayland Patch 4/2/12: Wayland Park Reopens to Applause, Praise. Under normal circumstances, cold drizzle on a cloudy day makes the average playground a lonely place. But Saturday wasn’t normal and the new Hannah Williams Playground isn’t average. On Saturday morning, under gray, wet skies, Wayland’s Department of Public Works Director Don Ouellette reopened Hannah Williams Playground after closing it in May 2011 for safety concerns and in anticipation of a redesign.

Wayland Patch 3/13/12: DPW Director: Only Weeks Remain Until Hannah Willams Reopens. It's been more than nine months since Hannah Williams Playground closed following an assessment that the playscape featured "structural safety hazards" and in anticipation of constructing new equipment in the space. Throughout the winter, residents have watched as the old wooden playscape came down, piles of dirt moved around the park, and new trees and plants were added to the area. And then the new play equipment went up and children got antsy to give the new equipment a try. That opportunity is coming soon. Department of Public Words Director Don Ouellette said that a best case scenario would allow him to reopn the park the weekend of March 24-25, possibly in conjunction with a scheduled open house at the DPW garage on Main Street. More likely, he said, is an opening date of April 7.

Wayland Patch 8/12/11: DPW Board Hears Update on Hannah Williams Park. Don Ouellette, director of Wayland’s Department of Public Works, told the Board of Public Works Monday that renovations of Hannah Williams Park are moving forward and, should everything go perfectly as planned, he hoped to reopen the park around Oct. 15. At Monday’s meeting, Ouellette reported that he had received quotes for all of the playground equipment and that a group of individuals who had been working on planning the renovation, in cooperation with Wayland’s Recreation Department, had reached consensus regarding the play equipment they wanted to see installed. The equipment, Ouellette said, will cost about $100,000 including shipping and cargo. Wayland approved $120,000 to be spent on the park’s renovations at the April Town Meeting. In addition to that money, the Friends of Hannah Williams has collected about $14,000 toward the renovations and, Ouellette said Monday, additional funds of $4,000-$5,000 have been donated. Hannah Williams has been closed to the public since late May, and demolition took place in mid-June leaving a largely vacant dirt pile where a playscape once stood.

Wayland Patch 3/21/11: Wayland Hears from Supplier Regarding Hannah Williams. Last week, Wayland got a glimpse of actual play equipment that could be used to renovate the Hannah Williams Playground on Main Street. In early February, a group began meeting to discuss options for renovating the aging park and playground. On Thursday night, Nancy White, vice president of sales for O’Brien and Sons, presented several play equipment options during a Hannah Williams renovation meeting. O’Brien and Sons is a supplier of outdoor playground equipment and holds a contract with the state of Massachusetts. Because of that contract, prices are reduced for cities and towns of the Commonwealth who purchase from the company.