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Tensions rose between community members and the Stanly County Board of Education at Tuesday’s meeting regarding concerns with the playground at Millingport Elementary.

Board members voted to go into recess during the middle of the comments of Pamela Lear, who tried to continue to speak past three minutes saying others who signed up were passing their time to her.

Lear spoke to the board about concerns regarding safe playground equipment, noting coming with the benefits of a playground come “significant safety risks if if these spaces are not properly maintained or designed with care.”

“It is imperative that we take proactive steps to minimize these risks by ensuring our playgrounds meet safety standards,” Lear said.

Lear provided photos of Millingport’s playground, one of which showed a piece of equipment blocked off with caution tape.

“Our playgrounds county-wide, not just Millingport, do not meet (Americans with Disabilities Act), the (Individual with Disabilities Education Act), and section 504 of the Civil Rights Act,” Lear said.

When Lear said others signed up to pass their time to her, the board passed a motion to go into a recess, with one individual yelling, “Tyrants!” at the board as several members left the meeting room.

After the five-minute recess, board member Carla Poplin voted to allow Lear to finish her presentation, seconded by board member Meghan Almond. However, the motion failed to get enough votes to pass.

The next speaker, Jessica Kimrey, completed the presentation from which Lear was speaking, asking about the $4.6 million Stanly County Schools has in savings.

Speaker Marlon Davis said she attended Millingport and her granddaughter was currently a student at the school.

Davis read from a copy of what she said was an inspection of the playground by SCS personnel. According to Davis, the report said playground equipment, monkey bars, slides and soccer poles had broken parts.

During the presentation by finance officer Terry Dudney about SCS’s budget request (approved) to county commissioners, Dudney said three areas of the request will address playground equipment.

“We are looking at playground equipment across our whole county,” Dudney said.

According to the capital outlay budget request, SCS is asking for $350,000 for a line item labeled “parking lot repairs and playgrounds.”

The request also lists a $500,000 item titled “Playground-ADA (Endy Elementary).”

Poplin later said she has given information to maintenance director Keith Benton about grants and additional funding for playgrounds. She mentioned the line item for Endy was included because the school lost its playground to the construction of a new 10-classroom building.