Kids with disabilities soon will have fun at ‘inclusive playground’ in Pierce County
As the mom of a 4-year-old boy who uses a wheelchair, Caroline Menzia knows that kids with disabilities often get left out. So she’s looking forward to seeing an upcoming addition to Pierce County: an inclusive playground accessible to all.
Menzia held her son, Corbin, during the playground’s groundbreaking ceremony Friday at Cirque Park in University Place. Soon the “little daredevil” will get to zoom by on a zipline at the recreation space, which Menzia helped to design.
“He’s 100% dependent on us to kind of help him move through life,” Menzia told The News Tribune. “So the more opportunities like this that he can be independent and experience things that all kids should be able to experience is just exciting for all of us.”
Community, local and state leaders shoveled dirt during ceremony at the site of the playground, the only one like it in Pierce County. The city worked with the University Place Parks & Recreation Fund on the project, which took several years of fundraising and planning, according to a news release.
The playground is designed so that kids — regardless of physical, mental or social ability — can have fun and play together. Advocates say inclusive play spaces offer a safe and fun recreational environment, help to decrease isolation and boost confidence and self-esteem.
University Place Mayor Javier Figueroa said the playground will serve local residents with disabilities, plus kids from elsewhere in the county and state. Parents and grandparents can benefit, too.
“The families that this child belongs to and is part of, they also get to enjoy their child [being able] to enjoy themselves,” Figueroa said. “So that’s a big smile on people’s faces.”
Construction at the playground is expected to continue throughout the summer, with hopes for a grand opening in early fall.
Chris Saunders, president of the city’s parks and recreation foundation, said the group behind the effort has been raising design funds and making marketing materials for two years. Saunders called it a “$1.1-million project” that has benefited from in-kind gifts from the city, grants from the state and county and money from businesses, foundations and individuals.
The design team includes families with disabilities, Saunders said. Some have pointed out that ground cover at typical playgrounds, such as wood chips and sand, interfere with wheelchairs.
In addition to a zipline, the University Place playground is expected to feature a climbing structure, swings and musical instruments, Saunders said.
“I can’t wait to watch the kids play with this,” she added, smiling.
The parks and recreation team has worked on a fundraising campaign with the Cal Ripken Sr. Foundation, a Baltimore-based nonprofit that helps under-served kids, according to a city news release. The city of University Park earned a grant from the state’s Recreation and Conservation Office for playground improvements.
University Place state Rep. Mari Leavitt noted that an inclusive bathroom will also be built and called the overall project “remarkable.”
“It really is going to be a tremendous asset for our children to play and thrive and explore in a way that they just can’t right now in Pierce County,” Leavitt told The News Tribune. “It’s significantly important for our children with disabilities to have the same kind of equity and access to playgrounds in a way that they can utilize, versus just having to sit on the sidelines because it’s not accessible for them.”
Leavitt said she asked Pierce County officials to contribute to the project and did the same at the state level.
The lawmaker told groundbreaking-ceremony attendees that the state gave $258,000 toward the effort during the legislative session. She later told The News Tribune via email that approximately $115,000 is still needed for the project, which will total around $1,150,000.
Leavitt looks forward to reading a book at the inclusive park and watching families play.
“I think that will be when we’ve really realized what a long-term impact such a playground will have,” she said. “They really are far and few between. Inclusive playgrounds are not the norm — they should be the norm, but they’re not the norm — and so this will really be a gem for Pierce County and beyond.”
