Posts Tagged ‘playground’
Tuesday, November 16th, 2010
A group of parents in Boston are going all out in planning a playground for their kids. They’re hoping for the end all of playgrounds.
- It would be big: 10,000 square feet near the river
- It will be fun: rocks for climbing, nets, a jungle gym, swings, and slides.
- It won’t be cheap! the plan is to spend $1.5 million
- It will be a great tourist attraction
The group has support from the mayor and others. One part of the plan the government likes is that it will be privately funded. The article didn’t go into the fund raising aspects (that’s a lot of money!)
They hope to finish the playground by next summer. They also want to establish an endowment to maintain the park long term.
The area has four playgrounds and four elementary schools that do not have playgrounds.
I hope they are planning to put rubber mulch in their first class playground. Even bigger kids can fall down and get hurt.
More at: http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/11/15/beacon_hill_parents_hatch_15m_playground_plan/
Tags: Boston, playground, rubber mulch
Posted in playground mulch, Playgrounds | No Comments »
Monday, October 11th, 2010
A group of parents have met some of their goal to raise money for a major playground addition to a public school. They’ve almost reached their goal.
A parent committee has raised slightly more than $65,000 and have a little less than $10,000 left to raise.
The first two phases are done. The last is to build an outdoor pavilion classroom and possibly a rubber mulch ground cover for playground access by the physically disabled. It’s expected to be done by June 2011.
They funds came from many, including Home Depot, and the police department.
Pretty impressive! Let’s hope they get the rest of the funds and can get the rubber mulch in before Winter and the pavilion before summer.
More at http://www.saultstar.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2756640
Tags: Home Depot, Mulch, playground, rubber mulch
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Thursday, October 7th, 2010
There’s been a problem at 3 schools in San Francisco — too many kids are getting hurt. Six kids in less than three weeks fell off the brand new playgrounds and broke bones. So school officials closed down the playgrounds to investigate.
8-year-old Lucas Fortune was one of the kids who fell off the new play structure at his Novato elementary school and he said it hurt worse than usual. He broke his arm.
Another child dislocated her shoulder, then the next day, another child broke his arm. So what is going on? Perhaps the playground equipment is too high from the ground. Or, officials wonder if the playgrounds are too crowded. They also plan to train staff on playground safety.
We believe there’s a better solution to preventing injuries on playgrounds — one not brought up in the article. It’s the playground surface. Having a safe surface like rubber mulch prevents injuries and protects kids. Kids are going to fall but they don’t have to break bones or get hurt.
Instead, all playgrounds should install rubber mulch like the first family at the White house did. Here’s a feature story (video) about playground safety and rubber mulch.
Tags: playground, Playground Equipment, rubber mulch, San Francisco
Posted in Playground Kid Safety, playground mulch, playground safety | No Comments »
Tuesday, September 28th, 2010
The playground at Guilderland Elementary School in Albany New York had dirt below all the equipment. Why is that a problem? Dirt isn’t a soft surface. When kids fall off the playground (as they often do) they are more likely to get hurt.
So the school decided to take action. Last week they held a ribbon cutting ceremony to mark the re-opening of the playground. What changed? They added rubber mulch.
The school got a $50,000 grant in 2007 to enhance the exiting playground, and meet the growning needs of the community.
The new playground is handicap and wheelchair accessible and “rubber mulch chips were also used to make it safer for kids.” Unfortunately the picture of the playground doesn’t show the new rubber mulch, but hopefully you can picture it. We used a picture from another playground that chose blue rubber mulch to give you an idea.
See: http://www.fox23news.com/news/local/story/New-playground-unveiled-in-Guilderland/weXNDqJ6BEWdzVk3pJf-xw.cspx?rss=39
Tags: Albany New York, playground, Playground Equipment, rubber mulch
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Wednesday, September 15th, 2010
A neighborhood playground in Buffalo New York has a problem. First a work crew came to remove the slide and the seesaw. They had been told by the city to remove the children’s playground equipment.
Why?
The equipment is about 10 years old. The problem? lead contamination. A child who had been playing at the playground had higher levels of lead. It could be traced back to property across the street, which was designated a Superfund site.
Common Council President David Franczyk said, “The area near a teeter totter where there’s a lead that didn’t have to be removed but was lower than the amount we had to close down the park, should be capped with either wood chips or rubber or mat, you know, just filled up and covered up.”
Neighbors weren’t happy to see the change – the neighborhood was happy to see an abandoned lot turned into a playground. The city plans to add wood chips or rubber mulch.
The best news? Officials are confident they can salvage that slide and seesaw.
See more at: http://www.wivb.com/dpp/news/buffalo/Playground-may-have-been-contaminated
Tags: playground, Playground Equipment
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Monday, September 13th, 2010
A playground in Edwardsville, Illionois is upgrading their playground surface. The new rubber mulch surface will provide a safer place for kids to play.
With the playground at Glik Park temporarily closed, crews work to remove old mulch that surrounded the playground equipment Tuesday. With a PEP Grant (Park Enhancement Program) from Madison County, the city of Edwardsville was able to make improvements to the park, including the removal of the mulch to make way for a new poured rubber surface underneath. The pathway in front shows the concrete base that was poured first, with the recycled rubber surface on top. Weather permitting to allow crews to finish the work, the playground should re-open within a few days.
Source: http://www.theintelligencer.com/articles/2010/09/08/local_news/doc4c87c021f3205542495676.txt
Tags: playground, Playground Equipment, rubber mulch
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Wednesday, September 8th, 2010
The rubber mulch can work well to prevent cuts and bruises, but Phillips said accidents on the concrete area have been minimal because playground equipment is not placed on the harder surface.
We don’t usually talk about concrete being a bad idea for playgrounds, but in this case it’s an additional surface. The Early Learning Center in Effingham, Illinois got some new concrete around the playground area.
It helps kids peddle tricycles or ride scooters and a place for them to line up after recess. Before they had to fit in-between the playground equipment. Usually concrete and playgrounds don’t mix but this is for the outer perimeter. While concrete is not a good mix for underneath swings or places where kids can fall – it can be ideal for other parts of the playground.
Congrats to The Early Learning Center on their new playground! See: http://effinghamdailynews.com/local/x752937437/A-dream-come-true
Tags: playground, Playground Equipment, rubber mulch
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Wednesday, September 1st, 2010
Lawsuits. They could be the end of swings on some playgrounds. The story that’s being told by many newspapers and web sites right now is from Charleston, West Virigina. That’s where they made the decision to remove swings from playgrounds at several elementary schools.
I think it’s sad.
“County schools safety manager Tim Stewart says the swing sets are being removed from 17 schools starting this fall.” Yes, 17!
The reason? Recent lawsuits and the expense of “installing proper safety barriers.” I’m not really sure what he means by safety barriers. My guess is the issue was children falling off the swings.
There were 2 lawsuits filed in the past year. I think I know one of the problems. The area under the swings is wood chips. They don’t make for a cushioned fall and are not recommended. Stewart said that rubber mulch would be better but that it’s not in the budget. So they decided to remove the swings.
I hope this isn’t a trend. What about playground grants?
For the whole story see: http://www.wvva.com/global/story.asp?s=13081358
Tags: Mulch, playground, Swing
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Monday, August 30th, 2010
You’ve heard of rubber playgrounds but what about rubber sidewalks? The company Rubbersidewalks has a product of the future called Terrewalks. It’s already been installed in 23 states, 190 cities and 16 universities.
What are the benefits of a rubber sidewalk? It’s good for people and trees. Gum doen’t stick to it, cigarettes won’t leave burn marks on it, it’s easy to remove and replace, it’s safer, and it doesn’t hurt tree roots. The sidewalks are flexible so they can mold around tree roots while still allowing water to penetrate to the roots.
Tree roots also damage concrete. When the roots get big they break up the concrete and it has to be replaced. That can be expensive. Rubber sidewalks do cost more to install but they also last longer (just like playground rubber mulch).
Just like rubber mulch the sidewalk pieces come in different colors. They also have different textures to choose from like granite, marble and stone designs.
Another benefit of the rubber sidewalks is they heat and cool better. You might see rubber sidewalks at a street near you.
Tags: playground, Rubber, rubber mulch, rubber sidewalk
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Wednesday, August 25th, 2010
“We selected the rubber mulch instead which is six inches deep but also if you step in it you have a bounce.”
A new playground in North Carolina was made with kids who have disabilities in mind. ECU’s Child Development Lab built the playground. The group partnered with play ground equipment maker Little Tikes Commerical.
The playground features a platform where a child can be transferred from a wheelchair onto the platform and, if they can crawl, up some equipment and down the slide.
More about their selection of rubber mulch:
“I have a disabled son, physically disabled son that can’t walk, so it’s cushion for him to be able to crawl around and play and enjoy himself,” said Candice Little, mother of twins who will be attending the new daycare and playground.
The team is taking their design to other communities. See: http://www2.wnct.com/news/2010/aug/25/new-playground-geared-toward-children-disabilities-ar-348734/
Tags: North Carolina, playground, Playground Equipment, rubber mulch
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