Rat infestation shuts playground

Site is that of old Memorial Stadium on 33rd Street

A large playground built in 2005 by more than 2,000 volunteers at the site of the old Memorial Stadium on 33rd Street in Waverly has been closed since Sunday because of a rodent infestation, said a spokeswoman for the YMCA of Central Maryland.

Sara I. Milstein, the local YMCA's chief marketing officer, said the playground next to the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg YMCA "will stay closed until we feel that it is treated and is safe. We're not going to expose children to an unsafe environment."

The spokeswoman said the playground's director noticed a problem with rats Sunday and decided to lock the gates. Milstein said the YMCA, which maintains the 14,000-square-foot play area, has a monthly contract with a pest control service and that treatments will now be done once a week.

Milstein said the wood mulch used as ground cover apparently attracts rodents, who like to burrow, and that officials may now change to rubber chips. She could not say when the playground would reopen.

"We are open to the entire community," Milstein said. "We are providing a valuable community service, and we are doing our best to deal with the challenges of a playground in an urban environment. Unfortunately, this is one of the challenges."