City seeks public input on park features
An concept draft created for an inclusive playground at Travers Park was shared by Mike Terrell at the Dec. 20 council meeting.
SANDPOINT — Following inclusive playground workshops at local schools and Sandpoint City Hall, city officials have launched a survey on the draft concept developed for the Travers Park inclusive playground and splash pad.
“The playground will include portions of the existing playground and a new playground that is designed based on local themes,” Jennifer Stapleton, Sandpoint city administrator, said. “These themes include Sandpoint Stories, Splash, Rapids, and Into the Woods.”
Following input from over 75 children at Washington Elementary, Sandpoint Waldorf School, Farmin-Stidwell Elementary, and Sandpoint Junior Academy, and a community workshop, a design team created a draft concept that incorporated feedback. The community can continue to offer feedback to help shape the design moving forward by participating in the survey.
The survey allows participants to rank features like poured-in-place safety surfacing, fencing, playground equipment, benches, etc., in order of highest to lowest priority.
During the Dec. 20 Sandpoint City Council meeting, Mike Terrell, landscape architect, presented a design and concept update for the playground and offered current outreach results.
“My Dream Playground” workshops yielded an overwhelming favoring of zip line features from children and adults, he said. Other features like spinning and climbing were favored above swinging and sliding.
For children, nature play outweighed theme play by 80 to 18. Themed play describes more traditional playground features like slides and swings, while nature play involves more unique features like logs and equipment children can climb over and under.
Among additional comments given during outreach efforts, participants contributed their hopes for big shade trees, rock caves, and a fire pole.
“[The] playground needs to be within a clear line of sight from the ball fields,” one participant said. “For a park to be inclusive, it needs to be a safe distance from the parking lot and not overly stimulating.”
Another attendee emphasized their favoring of a nature theme, including features like wood, stone, and rocks.
“Kids love playing in the woods — playing nature,” they said. “If we can bring a bit of nature into town, kids will love it.”
A place for little kids to sled was also identified as a priority by participants, Terrell said.
“We have a hill,” he said. “We have green grass on the north end within the playground — so we can have that interaction so kids can climb up on the hill, they can sled, there’s room up there to play in the grass. There’s that interaction area within the space as well. One of the things that that does is provide a spot where families can set up and kids can play and splash, and then move back and forth. If a kid is wet and cold on a day and needs to warm up, we can go up on the hill and get in some sunshine.”
The design team will study the results of the survey prior to the Jan. 3 council meeting where they will present a refined conceptual plan and budget estimate. The city is then expected to purchase equipment before construction begins this coming summer.
The expanded inclusive playground and splash pad is expected to be completed by fall 2024.
Survey: surveyhero.com/c/TraversParkInclusivePlayground