Kent Town Hall
41 Kent Green Boulevard
P.O. Box 678
Kent, CT 06757
Contact: Lesly Ferris, Director
Address: P.O. Box 678
41 Kent Green Blvd.
Kent, CT 06757
Hours: Monday-Friday
9:30 a.m.-noon and 1-2:30 p.m.
or by appointment
Telephone: 860-927-1003
Fax: 860-927-1313
E-mail: ParkandRec@kentct.org
Topics:
Office Location
The Kent Park and Recreation office is located in the Kent Town Hall at 41 Kent Green Boulevard, Kent. The office is located on the second floor and is accessible by elevator.
Emergency Contact Information
The Kent Park and Recreation director can be reached in the event of an emergency at 860-488-4126. Please note this is for emergency situations only. The Kent Town H all is the emergency evacuation location for Kent Park and Recreation programs.
Park Information
The Town of Kent has two parks, which fall under the jurisdiction of the Kent Park and Recreation Commission: Kent Common Park and Emery Park.
Kent Common Park is located off Swift Lane, just east of the intersection of Routes 341 and 7. The park is open from sunrise to sunset and features two tennis courts, toddler playground and pavilion. A park pass is required to use the tennis courts and to reserve the pavilion and may be purchased in the Park and Rec office.
Emery Park is located on Route 341E (Segar Mountain Road) and features 200 acres that is deeded for recreational use. The park features a spring-fed swimming area, picnic areas with grills, hiking trail, playground and the Merck Fountain. The park is open from sunrise to sunset. Swimming is available seasonally from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. and a park pass is required to swim. Passes may be purchased at the park during these hours or in the Park and Rec office.
Please note that information about Kent Falls State Park, Lake Waramaug State Park and Macedonia Brook State Park, including camping information, may be obtained from the State of Connecticut, Department of Environmental Protection, under whose jurisdiction these parks fall.
Park Pass
Park Passes are $30 for residents; $60 for non-residents and free for Kent residents ages 65 and older. Passes are required to swim at Emery Park, use the tennis courts and pavilion at Kent Common and participate in holiday ice skating. For park pass form, please see “Forms” on the Town of Kent homepage.
Additional Park Pass Information Including Registration Form (.PDF)
Program Registration
Kent Park and Recreation youth sports programs are open to Kent youngsters. Some ongoing classes and bus trips are open also to non-residents if space permits. Park and Rec accepts registrations for its programs on a first come, first served basis. Individual programs specify registration requirements and limitations, if any. Registration forms may be returned to the Park and Recreation office by mail or by leaving them in the office in town hall. Some registrations are accepted also at specific programs.
Cancellations and Refunds
Kent Park and Recreation reserves the right to cancel a program when there is insufficient registration and/or interest to warrant offering the program. Park and Rec will refund the registration fee in full for any program it cancels. Additionally, Park and Rec will refund the registration fee in full to participants who withdraw from a program before the first class or meeting. Refunds will not be offered once a program begins.
Bus Trips
May 4: Yankees Baseball v. Seattle Mariners at Yankee Stadium - Tickets are $85/person. Seating is in the upper tier reserved, section 20. The motorcoach bus will leave Sharon Center School at 8:30 a.m. and Kent Town Hall at 9 a.m. for the 1:05 p.m. game. The bus will depart the stadium approximately one-half hour after game completion for return trip. Send paid reservations to Kent Park and Rec, P.O. Box 678, Kent, CT 06757. For more information, call 860-927-1003.
Aug. 14: Saratoga Race Track - The motorcoach bus will leave Kent Town Hall at 7:30 a.m. and Sharon Center School at 8 a.m. The cost is $65/person and includes transportation, admission and grand stand reserved seating. Appropriate attire is required. The bus will depart one-half hour after the last race. Send paid reservations to Kent Park and Rec, P.O. Box 678, Kent, CT 06757. For more information, call 860-927-1003.
Oct. 3: West Point - The trip will feature a two-hour narrated cruise through the Hudson Highlands, buffet lunch at the Thayer Hotel and 90-minute tour of West Point Military Academy. The motorcoach bus will leave Sharon Town Hall at 7 a.m. and Kent Town Hall at 7:30 a.m. Return time is approximately 5 p.m. The cost is $100/person and includes transportation, cruise, lunch and West Point tour. Reservations must include participants’ names and dates of birth and will be accepted until Aug. 22. Send paid reservations to Kent Park and Rec, P.O. Box 678, Kent, CT 06757. For more information, call 860-927-1003.
After-School Program
Kent Park and Recreation offers an After-School Program Monday through Friday from 3 to 6 p.m. at Kent Center School. The program is open open to kindergarten through sixth graders at a cost of $9 per child per day. Youngsters may attend on a regular or drop-in basis. Pre-registration is required. For the ASP handbook and registration forms, please go to “Forms” on the Town of Kent homepage.
Additional After-School Program Information and Registration Form (.PDF)
Kent Park and Recreation participates in the Northwest Soccer League, a recreational multi-town league for travel teams at the Under-8, Under-10 and Under-12 levels. The U-8 program features coed teams that play small-sided games, 5v5, without a goalie. The emphasis at this level is to develop passing and dribbling skills and sportsmanship. The U-10 and U-12 teams can be both coed and girls, depending on the registration. The three travel teams practice one weeknight and play games on Saturdays from the first weekend after Labor Day into early November. The U-10 teams featured a jamboree at the end of the season while the U-12 teams participate in a tournament, reflecting the seasons’ standings. Registration information is announced typically in June with a registration deadline of mid-August. Instructional programs, featuring one weeknight practice, are offered for kindergarten and first graders. Registration forms for those programs are distributed at the beginning of September. For travel soccer registration form, please go to “Forms” on the Town of Kent homepage.
Adams League Youth Basketball is open to Kent youngsters in grades four through eight. The league features one weeknight practice and Saturday morning games in the Kent Center School gymnasium. Teams are coed with an emphasis on refining basketball skills, teamwork, sportsmanship and fun. Participants each receive a team T-shirt, sponsored by local businesses. Registration fee is $25/player and $20 for additional players in the same family. Registration deadline for Adams League Basketball is Nov. 1. For registration form, please go to “Forms” on the Town of Kent homepage. Park and Recreation offers instructional basketball programs for grades one, two and three. These programs, separated by grade, meet one weeknight during January and February. Registration fee is $5 per player and forms are distributed in mid-December.
Spring Baseball/Softball
Park and Rec offers sanctioned Little League team with Cornwall for Kent and Cornwall youngsters ages 9 to 12 as of 4/30; tryout required; Farm Team Little League team for Kent youngsters in grades 4-6 or players whose league age is 12 by Aug. 1; Minor League for third graders; Sr. Travel Softball for girls in grades 5 and 6 and Jr. Travel Softball for girls in grades 3 and 4. Each of these teams features weeknight practices and games as well as some Saturday games. Park and Rec offers also instructional programs for Kent youngsters in grades kindergarten, first and second. For registration form, please go to “Forms” on the Town of Kent homepage.
Berkshire United Soccer Club
Kent youngsters may participate in the Berkshire United Soccer Club which fields teams in the fall and spring. The fall teams features Division I level teams while the spring includes Division I and II teams. For more information about BUSC, visit www.berkshireunited.org or contact President Matt Mette, 860-364-1400.
Ongoing Programs
Tae Kwon Do – meets Tuesdays at 5:45 p.m. at the Kent Community House, North Main Street; open to youngsters and adults. Registration fee is $30 for a 6-week session and will be accepted at class.
Fitness – classes meet Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 9 to 10 a.m. at the Kent Community House, North Main Street. Participants may work at their own pace and ability; includes weights and strengthening. Residents may try one complimentary class. Registration for a four-week session is $45 and will be accepted at class.
Dog Obedience – classes for beginning dog obedience for owners and their dogs will be announced for spring, summer and fall.
Yoga Class with Wendi Jack - meets Thursday 5:45 to 7:00 p.m. at the Kent Community House, North Main Street. Registration fee is $75 for six-week session on either day or $135 for participation on both days. Participants may also select a per class rate of $15. The flow-style classes generally run 75 minutes and include pranayama (breathing exercises), asana (poses) and meditation. Registration will be accepted in teh Park and Rec office and at classes.
Special Events
Kids Fun Run – held annually in conjunction with the annual Kent Pumpkin Run. The 2007 run is Sunday, Oct. 28 at 11:30 a.m. at Kent Town Hall. Free registration, which is required, opens at 11 a.m. Please change the last sentence to read: Each runner receives a prize. Features three age appropriate races for youngsters ages 10 and under. Free registration is required. Each runner receives a participation ribbon.
Halloween Safety Program – Kent Park and Recreation and the Kent Lions Club, in conjunction with the Resident State Trooper, provide “glow-in-the-dark” necklaces to trick-or-treaters of all ages on Halloween. The Park and Rec director and Resident Trooper distribute necklaces on Halloween between 5 and 7 p.m. on North Main Street, adjacent the Kent Memorial Library and Kent Volunteer Fire Department.
Ice Skating – Park and Rec offers open skate and sticks and pucks during the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays and Kent and South Kent Schools. Participants are required to have a park pass. Skaters at open skate must wear skates and hat; sticks and pucks must have helmet and skates.
.
Easter Candy Hunt – The hunt, co-sponsored by Kent Lions Club, Kent Park and Rec, is open to Kent youngsters ages 10 and under. The 2008 hunt will take place Saturday, March 15 at 10 a.m. The inclement weather date is March 22. Features two hunts: ages 5 and under on the front lawn; ages 6-10 on the back lawn. Special prizes, donated by local merchants, will be awarded to the youngsters who find the candy with numbers on them. Participants may bring their own baskets and bags; bags will be provided, as well.
Summer Camps
Camp Kent is a summer day camp program that meets June 30 through August 22, 2008 (No camp July 4th) Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and is open to youngsters who will be entering grades one through eight in the fall. The camp features sports, games, arts and crafts, swimming, weekly show-and-tell, Friday pizza lunch and talent show. Camp is limited to 24 youngsters a week. Registration will be offered first to Kent residents, to non-residents who work and/or own businesses in town and then non-residents as space permits. Registration will be held on the second Wednesday of May in the Park and Rec office, town hall. Registration will be held Wednesday, May 21, 2008 from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the Park and Rec office, Kent Town Hall. Registration will be accepted in the Park and Rec office starting May 18, 2006 during office hours and by phone.
NOGA Summer Soccer Camp – Camp, open to Kent youngsters ages 5 and up, 2008 dates to be announced. The program will feature half-day session from 9 a.m. to noon and mini-camp session from 9 to 10:30 a.m. or 10:30 to noon. Registration brochures will be available in May by contacting the Park and Rec office at 860-927-1003.
U. S. Sports Institute - The U.S. Sports Institute Multi-Sports Camp meets July 14-18 at Kent Center School. The camp offers youngsters the opportunity to experience many different games and sports from around the world. The 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. program, open to youngsters ages 7 to 14 and costs $140; the 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. program is open to youngsters ages 5 to 7 costs $160. The Sport Squirts Camp will meet from 4 to 5:30 p.m. for youngsters age 3 to 5 and costs $80. Registration forms will be available through the Park and Rec office, 927-1003.
U.S. Sports Institute Beginners Golf Clinic - The clinic will meet July 21-25 at Kent Center School. Youngsters ages 5 to 7 will meet from 4 to 5:30 p.m. and youngsters ages 8 to 11 from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. Registration fee is $100 for each program. Call Park and Rec at 927-1003 for registration brochure.
U.S. Sports Institute’s Beginner Lacrosse Clinic - will be offered new for 2008: Aug. 11-15 from 5 to 7 p.m. at Kent Center School. Open to youngsters ages 7 to 14. The fee is $95.
Tennis Program
Kent Park and Rec offers summer and fall instructional tennis programs for beginning and intermediate youths, ages 6 to 14 and beginning adult and senior citizens. Dates and times for the 2008 programs will be announced.
Figure Skating Class with instructor Melissa Merritt is offered Saturday mornings from November 10 through February 10 at the Kent School ice rink. The program is open to youngsters ages kindergarten and up. Intermediate students will meet from 7 to 7:30 a.m.; beginners meet from 7:30 to 8 a.m. Registration fee is $90. A six-week session is available upon request for $45.
Park and Rec organizes month bus trips, utilizing the rural transit district bus, for Kent seniors. Upcoming trip dates are Nov. 29 – outing to Christmas Tree Shops in Orange and luncheon; Dec. 11 – holiday tree light outing and dinner. Call Park and Rec to register or for more information.
Flu Clinics will be offered in Kent on Oct. 29 from 11 a.m. to noon at Templeton Farms Barn Common Room, Swift Lane, and Nov. 3 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Kent Town Hall, 41 Kent Green Boulevard.
Kent Park and Rec offers youth flag rugby program for Kent youngsters in grades 2 to 6. Date of spring 2008 session will be announced. Participants should wear shorts/sweats and sneakers/cleats. The program will be an instructional, minimal contact introduction to Flag Rugby with emphasis on basic skills, fitness and knowledge of the game. Free registration is required. For more information, call 927-1003.