GoBlossom.com: Grand Reopening of Dolores Park playground

Dolores Park is 4 blocks from our house and is the epicenter of protests and hipster-dom (read: hula hooping and tight-rope practicing on a regular basis amongst the throngs of 20- or 30- somethings who biked to the park on bikes stripped of their brakes; if you haven't the foggiest what I am talking about then you're not a hipster!).

The park's former playground was a thirty-year old lead paint disaster with such poor drainage that is was often flooded. So, I was very excited last year when the plans for a new playground started circulating and construction started last summer. With construction finally completed this past March, the new playground structures were hidden under a huge tarp until the ribbon-cutting on March 31st.

And the new playground didn't disappoint. The space capitalizes on the city views (spectacular from a new 45 foot slide) and has several distinct areas of fun. There's a dedicated space to music with drums and chimes, separate areas for the older and younger kids, a sandbox, and lots and lots of climbing opportunities including ropes, a climbing wall, and hills.

There are two slides - a wide slide where kids climb up a hill with nervous parents holding their breath that they don't fall backwards or get pushed down by a larger kid (or maybe that's just me who's holding her breath) and then several kids go down the slide at once and pile up on top of each other at the bottom. The second slide has several stairs or an even steeper hill to climb. When you are at the top you are rewarded with beautiful views and a nice long slide ride to the bottom.

The swing area has a green handicap swing where the kids lie down. Each time we wandered over for a turn on the swing, we have waited in line with no fewer than 4 kids so it's a big hit with all kids - able or disabled. The first time we went to the playground Jack woke up from a dream and was screaming that he wanted to go on the green swing - it's that much fun I guess.

The ground is entirely lined with that rubbery cushiony stuff to minimize ouchies when falling. There's even an homage to the former playground which was anchored by a big wooden ship. The new playground also has a ship to climb with some bumpy waves behind it in its wake.

If it's a nice day, Jack and I share an icecream sandwich. Two side tangents:

I have never seen an icecream truck in San Francisco. Instead, we have guys who come around with small refrigerated pushcarts and there are usually 3 of them circling the playground at any one time if it's a nice day, which I have no problem with.
I recently read an article where parents in the upscale Brooklyn neighborhood of Park Slope want to ban the icecream truck/pushcarts from their playgrounds because their kids will throw tantrums if they see the icecream but are told "no". So instead of saying "no" or even conceding to sugar once in a while, these parents want to remove the uncomfortableness of either having to say "no" or, even worse, having their kids experience disappointment in not having it. Oy.