Yuma Sun e-Edition

YUMA MOVES TOWARD INCLUSIVE PLAY SPACES

By the City of Yuma

WITH A PRESENTATION to the Yuma City Council at a work session on Sept. 20, the City of Yuma introduced a new direction for its Parks and Recreation department – the incorporation of “inclusive” play spaces into future playgrounds, and into some existing ones as well.

The presentation noted an important difference between “inclusive” and “accessible,” the term that describes the current standard. Inclusive playgrounds exceed the minimum standards of accessibility to ensure every child can fully engage with the equipment without limitations. For example, a child needing a wheelchair can get to an “accessible” swing, but that child would need to be moved out of the wheelchair, onto the play structure, and then back to the wheelchair. On an “inclusive” swing, the entire wheelchair goes onto the swing – and other children, disabled or not, can ride along, too.

This distinction is important to parents of children who need a mobility device (wheelchair, walker, crutches, etc.).

Isaac and Alexis Liggett, who brought this need in the Yuma community to the City’s attention, told the City they have to drive three hours to get to the nearest playground feature where their son and their able-bodied daughter can play together on the same structure at the same time. The closest installed location to Yuma of one inclusive playground piece, the Liggetts found in their research, was in Kansas.

“Most wheelchair users are most comfortable, and safest, in their wheelchairs,” Alexis Liggett explained to the City Council, noting that play features at Yuma’s popular Stewart Vincent Wolfe Creative Playground do not have this capability at present. Thus, the Creative Playground, also referred to as Castle Park, is the City’s first target location for the addition of

inclusive play features.

Fortunately, the City’s new Parks and Recreation Director, Eric Urfer, has been involved with similar projects in his prior positions. Also fortunately, the City is planning an entirely new park – the East Mesa Community Park. That park’s playground will be designed from the start with inclusivity features in mind.

One potential obstacle to adding inclusive playgrounds is the cost. Urfer noted that inclusive play spaces not only need the specialized play equipment, but a surface that is both safe for children and easy for those with mobility devices to navigate, and also more ADAcompliant parking spaces nearby. Added together, and the cost of an inclusive play area can run 75% more than a traditional park playground.

The City will do its part – finding and securing grants to

fund this purpose may help some. But the volunteer community spirit that led to the development and construction of the Creative Playground in its 1997 inception will determine how many inclusive play structures the City can provide, and how quickly those can arrive.

The inclusive play page on the City’s website, www. yumaaz.gov/inclusiveplay, lists ways that residents can get involved, including direct donations, sponsorships, in-kind contributions, community presentations, volunteering and spreading the word.

Or, those wishing to get involved can contact Urfer directly at 928-373-5208 or email eric.urfer@ yumaaz.gov.

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2022-11-01T07:00:00.0000000Z

2022-11-01T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://yumasun.pressreader.com/article/281788518013235

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