Up on Play Landscape Architects Issue 4

The Canyon Collection™, landscape architects ROCKED ChicagoAt the American Society of Landscape

Architects Annual Meeting & Expo earlier

this month in Chicago, we ROCKED

the exhibit hall! Our booth space featured

The Canyon Collection™ and a customized

Netplex™ in our new colors and the

HealthBeat® Chest/Back Press and

Elliptical stations.

Visitors to our booth were met with our

nature-inspired climbers, which enticed

many to test out their rock-climbing skills.

All that play combined with Pop Rocks

took attendees back to days from their

youth! In addition to our booth, we were

proud to sponsor the Opening General

Session featuring creators of the PBS

series, 10 Parks That Changed America.

We also sponsored the Edible Landscape

Celebration, which included healthy, locally

sourced and heirloom foods, dancing and a

Blues Brothers tribute!

Even more, we were excited to celebrate

our President Pat Faust, who was presented

with an Honorary Membership in ASLA.

This honor is given to non-landscape

architects for their commitment to the

landscape architecture profession.

We had a great time in Chicago visiting with

park and recreation professionals, hearing

from industry experts and taking in all that

the city has to offer. Our employees and

playground consultants are already looking

forward to the 2016 ASLA Annual Meeting

in New Orleans!

Why do my kids like playground spinners?Think back to your days spent on the playground. What were your favorite playground activities? For many of

us here at Landscape Structures, our favorites were the Merry-Go-Round and playground swings. And today,

if you spend any time at your local playground, you probably notice a number of kids that flock to these

same types of components.

Why are some kids so fascinated with spinning activities? Because it’s one of the core movements that engages

the vestibular system. When a child spins on spinners like the TopsyTurny™ or OmniSpin® spinners, their brain

receives signals to help control movement and balance. Even more, our playground spinners provide fun and

also present opportunities for kids to be more social and engage in cooperative play.

Children discover their world and how to be successful in it through sensory play. They develop their behaviors

based on what they learn through their senses. And the more sensory-rich play experiences they have, the more

the develop skills necessary to engage, change and impact the world around them. Learn more about

sensory playgrounds at playlsi.com.

TopsyTurny™ spinner OmniSpin® spinner Saddle Spinner

Were you unable to attend ASLA in Chicago this year?

We still want to share a piece of it with you. Request a copy of the 2015 PLAY Book, and be inspired to make your mark with a custom playground design. From apples to airplanes or the land of Oz to a map of the world, custom can do anything you want it to do. Let’s collaborate!

Promoting literacy through inclusive playground designsThanks to the collaboration of some very hard-working

organizations, there is a new inclusive playground ready to

welcome children and families of all abilities. This summer,

Shane’s Inspiration along with First 5 LA, the Los Angeles

Department of Recreation and Parks, Too Small to Fail and the

Exceptional Children’s Foundation hosted a grand opening to

celebrate the new Landscape Structures inclusive playground at

Sepulveda Recreation Center in Panorama City, Calif.

The playground offers a train theme with custom play structures

that mimic a train depot and train cars, and all of the structures are

designed to welcome children of varying abilities. Even more, this

playground is the first in the country to highlight Too Small to Fail’s

“Talking is Teaching: Talk, Read, Sing” campaign to boost children’s

early language development. The playground at Sepulveda

Recreation Center incorporated the Talking is Teaching materials

into playground signage to prompt fun conversations, stories and

songs while parents and children play together.

Research shows that simple, everyday interactions such as talking,

reading, and singing to young children—especially during the

first five years of life—can improve language skills, boost brain

development and have a lifelong positive impact. That’s why

we’re partnering with Too Small to Fail to reach parents of young

children across the country to address a serious obstacle impacting

children’s education and development—the “word gap.” By better

equipping parents with the knowledge and tools they need to

succeed as their child’s first teachers, we hope to see a significant

decline in the school readiness gap and an improvement in overall

health, development and child well-being.

Learn more about our commitment to the Too Small to Fail initiative.

CASE STUDY: An adventure in natureCLIENT: Miami-Dade Parks, Recreation and Open

Spaces, Miami, Fla.

DESIGNERS: Karen Cheney, landscape architect at

Miami-Dade Parks, Recreation and Open Spaces

GOAL: Create a “play-in-the-woods” experience to

reconnect kids to the natural environment

SOLUTION: To create a nature-inspired play

experience, the posts of the Netplex™ and

PlayBooster® playground structures are custom

printed to look like tree bark and recycled wood-

grain lumber panels were used. Custom oak leaf

balance boards, mushroom steppers and a log

balance beam enhance the nature play theme and

deliver challenge disguised as fun. In addition to

the play environment, Karen renovated the grade

separation to be a concrete gravity wall that she

envisioned as a balance beam for children as well

as a resting area for visitors.

Visit playlsi.com to read more about how Karen

and the Miami-Dade Parks, Recreation and Open

Spaces department designed a prescription for

nature deficit at Tom Sawyer Island at Amelia

Earhart Park.

Landscape Structures Inc.601 7th St. SouthDelano, MN 55328-8605888.438.6574763.972.5200playlsi.com

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©2015 Landscape Structures Inc.

Calendar of EventsLooking forward to seeing you at the following events:

DECEMBER

• National Executive Development School, Albuquerque, N.M.

FEBRUARY

• Play Coalition, Clemson, S.C.

Industry News Read about the latest happenings affecting landscape architects, and then join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn or Google+. Let us know what you think about the following topics:

• Landscape architects see creations evolve over time Unlike buildings, designed to look their best on opening day, parks, plazas and planted spaces debut with the promise of something better yet to come. After the trees spread out and the shrubs settle in, the larger intentions emerge. Read more.

• Rooftop Farm Designer Gwen Schantz Wants to Cover New York City in Green The farm-to-table movement has ushered in tons of restaurants that source seasonal, locally grown ingredients, but Schantz’s installations take it another step closer. The two farms grow more than 50,000 pounds of organically-cultivated produce every year, most of which is eaten within a couple miles of their facilities. Read more.

• Breathing New Life Into Cities In just 35 years, it’s estimated that six billion people will live in cities. With three quarters of humanity living in urban areas, there will undoubtedly be major stress points. The Nature Conservancy’s Global Cities Program aims to demonstrate the critical role nature can play in shaping our future cities to be more resilient, livable and flourishing. Read more.