Location: Salem, OR | Architect: Scott Edwards Architecture | Client: Salem Health
The “Let’s All Play Place” playground reinforces the value of integrating inclusive and therapuetic elements within a public playground setting. Developed in conjunction with Salem Health’s Rehabilitation therapists and Harpers Playground, all play elements of the playground were designed to support cognitive, social, behavioral and physical activities in a public playground setting. Customized play elements and a serpentine track meander through the playground, providing an accessible circuit for patients to build motor skills.
Once occupied by the Oregon School for the Blind, the site for the Let’s All Play Place is a deep in history. Though demolished, the School’s history and legacy of service lives on through commemorative elements in and around the playground. A brick arch utilizes salvaged bricks from the School, recalling the iconic shape of the School’s iconic collonade. Commemorative panels flank the entry arch, and tell the School’s rich history through text, imagery and braille. The footprint of the School is traced through the play surfacing and landscape.
As an Associate Principal with 2.ink Studio, Tommy Solomon was project manager and lead designer for this project.
Photos courtesy of 2.ink Studio.