spinners
Minnesotans Love Their New Zip Line Park
Baker Park
Photo courtesy Damon Farber When Minnesota’s Three Rivers Park District sketched out the plan for updating an aging playground, there was no question it would include a zip line. 600 kids and their parents made that clear when they were asked for suggestions. Describing the old zip line as a “beloved element of the…
Restoration of a New Deal-Era Gem in Central Park: A Case Study of Toll Family Playground
In the era of the New Deal, federally sponsored public works projects led to the creation of parkways, beaches, zoos, golf courses, and hundreds of playgrounds in New York City. At the center of this work was Robert Moses, chairmen of the New York Park Association’s Metropolitan Conference on Parks,…
Playgrounds Spin into the Next Generation
Ever tried twirling on a playground spinner as an adult? Did it make your stomach turn? It’s not uncommon. When adults spin, the centrifugal motion can make them feel dizzy and uncomfortable, even sick. But spatial disorientation is good for our brain in appropriate doses, which is why sitting at…
The Vestibular System: The Sixth Sense of Playground Design
Several weeks ago, at the ASLA conference in Los Angeles, Greg Miller, principal landscape architect at MRWM, and Lucy Miller, founder and director at the STAR institute for Sensory Processing Disorder, discussed how children with sensory disorders benefit from strategically designed playgrounds and gardens. Their presentation drew my thoughts to…
