Not just child's play: how your agency can create design solutions for difficult playground sites

Parks & Recreation, August, 2004 by Scott W. Landgren

The layout of a school playground requires more than just good design--it must also alleviate the various concerns amid the community. For parents, the playground must be safe for children, while teachers also request an open play area that allows all students to be seen at a glance. Facility maintenance managers need a site accessible for vehicles and equipment, and school administrators must ensure the project stays within budget while still providing all necessities. And don't forget the kids who play on it--they need it to be fun. When designing playgrounds on topographically challenging sites, meeting everyone's needs becomes even more complex.

Topographically challenging sites, or areas that have various landscaping problems, require an experienced and creative design team to work hands-on with park officials, school administrators or committee members, to construct a playground that meets handicap accessibility requirements, safety codes and the concerns of everyone involved. For instance, at the K-3 Park School in Brookline, Mass., the topography of the playground--although beautiful with its many mature trees and exposed ledge--was not conducive to a safe and accessible play area for children.

In addition to the numerous outcroppings of exposed rock ledge, a 10-foot grade change within the 80-foot wide playground area made the area steep and dangerous. Outdated play equipment at the 20-year-old playground further exacerbated the problem. It was not up to current handicap accessibility codes, which made for a problematic and unsafe environment for children, teachers and maintenance managers.

Accessible for All

Because handicap accessibility requirements are restrictive for grade changes within level areas and the slope connecting them, removing the ledge to "plateau" the Park School's sloped site was an important first step in creating a functional and exciting playground.

Through the installation of a curve linear segmental retaining wall (made of individual 6-inch-high and 1-foot-long pre-cast concrete blocks with a split-face) the landscape design team created two distract, flat tiers for the playground. The cost to create the wall, an additional fence, and the earthwork, which included the use of an excavator with a pneumatic jackhammer to level the 10-foot grade change, was close to $80,000 and took three weeks of labor.

The final product--a two-tiered landscape with an accessible ramp and route connector made of bituminous concrete--allows for handicapped students to move easily throughout the playground. In addition, by installing rubber resilient surfacing and engineered wood fibar (which is a cost-effective wheelchair accessible material and provides a cushion when a child falls), the playground is now much more welcoming and accessible for all students and staff.

As handicap accessibility codes change frequently, having a knowledgeable designer who stays current on all Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and state accessibility requirements is important for playground projects, especially those that feature rough terrain. At the public K-8 Beebe School in Malden, Mass., the design team was given a very topographically challenging site on which they were assigned to build an ADA-accessible playground. Long and narrow, the site featured a significant grade change throughout. To create a safe and handicap accessible playground, various terrace levels were designed to serve numerous outdoor play options, including play equipment areas with fibar mulch surfacing, hardscapes for flexible activities, and a spring toy area with rubber surfacing. Integral to the overall design, a coherent system of ramps and sloped walkways connects the terrace levels.

Safety First

The Park School playground's narrow, ledge-dotted site also presented a challenge for designers charged with improving its safety. To create a safer play environment, the site was leveled off and its exposed rock and railroad ties replaced with rubber resilient and wood fibar surfacing, retaining walls and railings. Also, because the playground abutted a busy roadway; designers improved the existing fence, but, in addition, created retaining walls to protect the mature trees along the roadway, which enhanced the buffer between the playground and the street.

Teachers also expressed concern with the lack of visibility at the site. Due to the multiple levels and closed-in playhouses, the site provided too many hiding spots, preventing teachers from a clear view of the children. By designing an open playground, including see-through playhouses, the new site allows teachers to keep an eye on students.

The original site's multi-leveled environment also prevented the playground from providing adequate fall zones around play equipment, causing a potential safety hazard. Leveling off the playground created more area to space out play equipment. Working with the playground equipment designer and distributor, the design team was able to specify appropriate and handicap-accessible equipment, and distance these play pieces to create ample fall zones.