CRESWELL – Slides, swings, skate parks and maybe even a ”kitten area”; these are some of the results from a future parks survey at Creslane Elementary.
Amy Knudsen, city council president, and Michelle Amberg, city manager, attended Creslane’s open house, where kids, parents and caregivers were shown concept drawings and given information about three future parks in town.
Kids were asked what their favorite parks have, and the City received 387 responses, including additional questionnaires received from Creswell Clubhouse and citizen email responses. Knudsen said the majority of the kids were in kindergarten through fifth grade.
Results reveal that kids just want the meat and potatoes of a park: a playground (40%), a water feature (14%), and surprisingly rationally, bathrooms and similar amenities (9%).
Top items listed were slides, swings, splash pads, skate parks, monkey bars, a dog park, a merry-go-round and a bike course. More ”unique submissions” included a pirate ship, free candy, bacon and chicken.
Knudsen said adults voiced they would like to see fitness equipment in the parks so that they can work out while their kids play and they also want adaptive equipment for children with disabilities. Amberg noted that there is no such equipment in Creswell.
Amberg recalled an experiment in California that installed 100% adaptive equipment, and it has become the most popular park around. ”All the kids went to that park because they can play with all of their friends there,” she said, making it an all-inclusive park.
City council will discuss park designs for the South Second Street Park and Grasslands Park at a future work session.
