mark handler
SAWHORSE
Council to Consider Santa Monica's First Universally Accessible Playground
By Jason Islas
Lookout Staff
http://www.surfsantamonica.com/ssm_site/the_lookout/news/News-2012/January-2012/01_09_2012_Council_to_Consider_Santa_Monicas_First_Universally_Accessible_Playground.html
January 9, 2012 -- The Santa Monica City Council will decide Tuesday whether to move forward with plans to build the city's first universally accessible playground.
The playground, which would be located next to the coastal bike path off of Ashland Avenue, would go far beyond the usual Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements for accessibility in order to make it a place to play for children with all ranges of abilities, according to City officials.
“The proposed playground demonstrates the opportunities that diversity brings to civic life,” City officials said.
After several months of input from the community, the Disabilities Commission and the Recreation & Parks Commission, Katharine Spitz Associates, Inc. (KSA) decided on a design that resembles an old clipper ship buried in the sand.
Though the details of the design have yet to be finalized, KSA has painted in broad strokes what the new playground would look like.
“The sails would provide shade, the hulls would be filled with multi-sensory play elements, and active play elements would be located on the deck,” staff wrote in its report to the council.
The playground would have all the features one would expect to find at a playground -- “swings, rolling bar slides, climbing nets, a captain’s wheel, music elements, and rotating balance structures,” according to staff.
However, the playground is designed so children who require mobility assistance can play alongside children without disabilities, according to staff.
At the community sessions, participants suggested that the playground also be accessible to parents who may be disabled. Participants also wanted the children to be able to play in the sand and water, even if they are wheelchair bound.
One suggestion towards solving that problem, which was made at a joint Recreation & Parks and Disabilities Commission meeting in October, was to use elevated sandboxes that allow children to play from a sitting or standing position.
If approved, Santa Monica's universally accessible playground will be one of several recently built in the Los Angeles area, including Aidan’s Place in West Los Angeles, Shane’s Inspiration at the Griffith Park in Los Angeles, and Glen Alla in Marina del Rey.
If the council decides to move forward with the park, KSA will finalize design plans by March 2012. The tentative starting date for construction, if all goes according to plan, is August 2012, according to staff.
By Jason Islas
Lookout Staff
http://www.surfsantamonica.com/ssm_site/the_lookout/news/News-2012/January-2012/01_09_2012_Council_to_Consider_Santa_Monicas_First_Universally_Accessible_Playground.html
January 9, 2012 -- The Santa Monica City Council will decide Tuesday whether to move forward with plans to build the city's first universally accessible playground.
The playground, which would be located next to the coastal bike path off of Ashland Avenue, would go far beyond the usual Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements for accessibility in order to make it a place to play for children with all ranges of abilities, according to City officials.
“The proposed playground demonstrates the opportunities that diversity brings to civic life,” City officials said.
After several months of input from the community, the Disabilities Commission and the Recreation & Parks Commission, Katharine Spitz Associates, Inc. (KSA) decided on a design that resembles an old clipper ship buried in the sand.
Though the details of the design have yet to be finalized, KSA has painted in broad strokes what the new playground would look like.
“The sails would provide shade, the hulls would be filled with multi-sensory play elements, and active play elements would be located on the deck,” staff wrote in its report to the council.
The playground would have all the features one would expect to find at a playground -- “swings, rolling bar slides, climbing nets, a captain’s wheel, music elements, and rotating balance structures,” according to staff.
However, the playground is designed so children who require mobility assistance can play alongside children without disabilities, according to staff.
At the community sessions, participants suggested that the playground also be accessible to parents who may be disabled. Participants also wanted the children to be able to play in the sand and water, even if they are wheelchair bound.
One suggestion towards solving that problem, which was made at a joint Recreation & Parks and Disabilities Commission meeting in October, was to use elevated sandboxes that allow children to play from a sitting or standing position.
If approved, Santa Monica's universally accessible playground will be one of several recently built in the Los Angeles area, including Aidan’s Place in West Los Angeles, Shane’s Inspiration at the Griffith Park in Los Angeles, and Glen Alla in Marina del Rey.
If the council decides to move forward with the park, KSA will finalize design plans by March 2012. The tentative starting date for construction, if all goes according to plan, is August 2012, according to staff.