KidsAbility opens new fully accessible playground in Waterloo

KidsAbility just opened a new playground in Waterloo that aims to be accessible to all children, of all abilities.

Located at 500 Hallmark Dr., sitting in KidsAbility’s backyard, the fully accessible playground is open to the public on evenings, weekends and holidays – when the organization isn’t using it.

The new playground features specially designed elements like a wheelchair-accessible swing and spinner, sensory play zones, equipment ramps, a variety of slides, cushioned surfacing, a non-verbal communication board, vibrant colours and monkey bars of different heights.

“We have built a playground that meets the needs of the children and youth that come to use our services and also, we believe it is a destination for families in the community who need access to an accessible playground,” said Lisa Talbot, Executive Director of KidsAbility Foundation.

“We have a large communication board with picture symbols up that allows children who have difficulty communicating verbally to be able to communicate when they’re on the playground and connect with their peers, so it has a lot of really wonderful features.”

Parking is located at KidsAbility Waterloo Centre and Talbot mentioned there are trails attached to the new play space.

The project cost over $614,000 to build due to the specially designed equipment brought in. Most of the funding came from the community, individual donors, local service clubs or businesses and a grant from the City of Waterloo.

The playground is similar to Kate’s Place in Elmira – an accessible playground that opened in 2012.

“There are a few other accessible playgrounds in the region, but what sets KidsAbility’s playground apart is its comprehensive design specially tailored for children of all abilities. While other playgrounds may feature accessible elements this playground was specifically developed to align with our therapeutic goal,” said Talbot. “It ensures that it serves as a hub for both play and rehabilitation. So, it’s fully accommodating the children that we work with that have various developmental and communication needs.”

The fully accessible playground is open daily from 6 a.m. to 11 p.m. with KidsAbility utilizing it Monday to Friday from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. The public is invited to use it when KidsAbility isn’t open.

“Many of the kids that we see can’t access regular playgrounds and so this is so exciting for our families in our community to have another space where they can just fully participate, be independent and belong in the community.”