Photo Credit: Corey Qualls
Before many of the current standards were in place, playground surfaces included asphalt, hard-packed dirt, decomposed granite, and pea gravel. Smaller jurisdictions considered themselves lucky to install even a modest play structure with staff members or volunteers that often had little knowledge regarding playground safety. Before anyone says it, I am aware that many played on playgrounds with such surfaces and turned out just fine. But times have changed and knowledge of safety standards has expanded; although regulations have improved new play areas, what about all those older playgrounds?
Recent changes to both ADA compliance and stricter fall material safety ratings left older modes of fall material in non-compliance, thus adding to already strained budgets for many jurisdictions. The city of Central Point, Ore., is one jurisdiction that fell short of standards both for safety and ADA compliance due to low-cost construction materials used when playgrounds were built years ago. The mentality of the staff and community at the time was to use the lowest cost materials, just to provide a place for kids to play. The majority of the city’s problem surfaces were installed prior to the creation of a parks department. Maintenance workers did the best they knew or at least met prior standards within the budget they were provided. Current budget constraints and an “if it’s not broke, don’t fix it” attitude contributed to the replacement problems. But now that it’s necessary to update them, the question is how to pay for each project and how a small staff can accomplish this feat?
Pair Up For Progress
Thanks to a local networking meeting, answers to questions and an opportunity for a unique partnership opened from an unlikely place—the Jackson County Community Justice Transition Center. Incarcerated workers have long been as a source of labor for weed-abatement projects, but assisting in rehabilitating a playground is a first for the city. The cost of utilizing the transition center workers is substantially lower, thus saving money that can be reinvested to rehabilitate additional trouble spots. It is a win-win for all—incarcerated workers have a unique job to include in their work experience and the city gets low-cost assistance for a problem that needs corrected.