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Accessible Outdoor Spaces

February 2, 2015

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I suggest that if you are willing to let go, let go of the chase to acquire or accumulate always more and let go of that way of perceiving the world, then you can take all that energy and attention and invest it in what you have. When you do that you will find unimagined treasures.
-Lynne Twist

In July 1993, the swing set on the 25-year-old playground at the Falls Church-McLean Children's Center in Falls Church, Virginia collapsed. The staff used this as an opportunity to rethink the design of the playground to make it more accessible for all the children. In her article, "More than a Playground: Accessible Outdoor Learning Centers," in the Exchange Essential: Creating Outdoor Environments, director Phoebe Meyer describes how these few adaptations to their plans allowed all children to enjoy their outdoor learning space...

A wheelchair access ramp was added to provide access from the play area to the climbing and swinging area.
A transfer point and another slide were added to the climber.
The paved tricycle path was connected to the sidewalk at the front entrance, to the climbing area access, to the permanent art easel, to the play house entrance, and later, when funds permit, to the stage.
A swing structure was chosen that would allow an adapted body swing to be added and used as needed.

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