One of the top three new attractions requested by the public is a destination playground. The theme of Riverfront's new playground is the Ice Age Floods which are responsible for sculpting the unique geology of our region. Because of the dynamic nature of the Ice Age Floods and the rich imagery of its components, its story will be transformed into an exciting play environment that also offers rich, multi-dimensional learning opportunities.
The goal of the playground is to create an exciting, safe, dynamic, high quality nature-based play/learn environment for children and their families. It will be incredibly unique in its capacity to provide both passive and active recreation with age-appropriate play areas for children to interact with water and landscape features depicting the ice age floods geologic story.
Performance Climbing Boulder courtesy of the Jess Roskelley Foundation.
Wheels Park designed by Grindline.
When Parks and Recreation removed the UTF skate park, we promised a replacement. Grindline conducted a study to advise on best locations, and those were Liberty, AM Cannon, and Riverfront – the most highly desired based on community feedback. Staff have long been supportive of a wheels park in Riverfront, and are thrilled to see it take shape on the north bank alongside other developing amenities that will provide free recreation for all ages and abilities.
Grindline and Bernardo Wills architects held a Focus Group in December, an Open House in January 2019, and an online survey that gathered important feedback from the wheels community and shaped the design.
The design for the Riverfront's wheels park is truly one of a kind, as themes and obstacles specific to Spokane's geology skating style drive every aspect of the park. Based on public input, the new wheels park includes street features with a transitioned wall ride on the east side, and two bowls which utilize the wall of the operations and maintenance building for a slanted wall ride. The design also incorporates a flat bar that used to be part of the UTF skate park that was very popular with our local skateboarding community.
The 10,000 square-foot Hooptown USA Basketball Court will feature 6 basketball hoops and professional grade surfacing.
The goal of the playground is to create an adaptive, safe, dynamic, high quality nature-based play/learn environment for children of all abilities and their families. It will be incredibly unique in its capacity to provide both passive and active recreation with age-appropriate play areas for children to interact with water and landscape features depicting the ice age floods geologic story.
Elements include:
Through a request for qualifications, and in competition with other excellent firms, local landscape architects from Bernardo Wills were selected to design the regional playground and entire North bank of Riverfront.
In addition to landscape architects and architects, the design team includes a geology professor with expertise in the ice age floods of our area, a skate park designer, a playground safety inspector with a focus on adaptive design, and engineers of multiple specialties including stormwater.
We are grateful to our partners for grant applications and project design: the City of Spokane Therapeutic Recreation Program, Access 4 All Spokane, Spokane County Accessible Communities Advisory Committee, the Ice Age Floods Institute and the YMCA.
Playground, Wheels Park, Parking, Maintenance Building, Additional Amenities
Thru Spring 2021
The budget for the design and construction of the North Bank is nearly $9.9M. Parks & Recreation recently received a $500,000 grant from the Washington State Recreation and Conservation Office to go towards the new playground. These grant funds will help take an already great project to the next level in providing a unique recreational experience for all ages and abilities unlike anything else in the region.
