Landscape Architect Articles

Playtopia at Tumbleweed Park09-01-11 | News

Playtopia at Tumbleweed Park

Jeffrey Velasquez, RLA, ASLA, J2 Engineering & Environmental Design, Phoenix

J2 Engineering & Environmental Design was selected to provide design services for a $6 million, 26-acre park improvement project (?EUR??,,????'?????<

The landscape architects of J2 Engineering & Environmental Design, LLC of Phoenix, Ariz. worked with the city of Chandler to develop a destination playground and creative play environment for children of all ages. The playground design incorporated themes to pay tribute to the Chandler region?EUR??,,????'?????<

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Tumbleweed Park
Chandler?EUR??,,????'?????<

Chandler is a growing suburban Phoenix community about 17 miles southeast of downtown Phoenix. Chandler used to be about agriculture, however, Arizona, like many Sun Belt states, has experienced a loss of much of its farmlands and open space to growth and development. From the mid-1990s to the middle part of this decade, the Phoenix metro area had grown at the alarming rate of about an acre per hour. City leaders wanted to maintain some of Chandler?EUR??,,????'?????<

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Playtopia offers tot, tire and traditional swings to meet the needs of various ages. The line is always long to get on the tire swing at ?EUR??,,????'?????<

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Early Visions and Play Philosophy
When city staff and J2 began site analysis and envisioning Playtopia, discussions revolved around the idea of a ?EUR??,,????'?????<

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Three custom steel pavilions (Star Building Systems) offer picnicking and gatherings for up to 575 people. Amenities include picnic tables, multiple barbeque grills, lighting, picnic counters, an access drive for catering services and electrical outlets.

The question became, ?EUR??,,????'?????<

Another strategy discussed in the envisioning phase was designing a playground in which users could have different experiences with each visit, especially as children grow through the years and return to the site. The design team believed this could be achieved by various creative play opportunities and themed zones, by designing for seasonal change, accommodating multiple events at one time within the site and by allocating space for the possibility of future improvements.

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As the average summer high in Chandler, Ariz. is 104 degrees, you think shade when it comes to park and rec design. Custom barn ramadas (Classic Recreation Systems) with weathervanes provide the all important shade and picnic space. The barn ramadas, located immediately adjacent to the main ?EUR??,,????'?????<

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Shade, Glorious Shade
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With Arizona being one of the top areas in the nation for occurrences of skin cancer, and with the public?EUR??,,????'?????<

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Project Objectives
The goal had now been defined: Develop a destination playground of creative play experiences with a theme based on Chandler?EUR??,,????'?????<

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The objectives were defined:

Create a ?EUR??,,????'?????<

Place abundant shade in the playground to mitigate the desert heat.

Use Chandler?EUR??,,????'?????<

Maintain the park?EUR??,,????'?????<

Interpret Chandler?EUR??,,????'?????<

Design the playground so park users have varying play experiences with each visit and as the seasons change, plus accommodate multiple events.

The larger-than-life Gila monster (Cemrock) offers a variety of heights for seating and climbing. It is fabricated of glass fiber reinforced concrete (GFRC), is hand detailed and hand painted. Area kids know to stay away from the real desert lizard, which can grow as long as two feet. It is the only venomous lizard native to the U.S., residing in the southwest and northwestern Mexico. Fortunately, the creature is a plodder.

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J2 designers used the city?EUR??,,????'?????<

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Custom concrete dinosaur rib bones (Cemrock) protrude from the sand at the ?EUR??,,????'?????<

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Farm Land
Playtopia encourages kids to run and roam freely over acres of grassy berms and open space. The open sight lines let parents keep track of their little ones, with no worrys about traffic. ?EUR??,,????'?????<

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UV-resistant fiberglass image panels (Pannier) in aluminum frames in ?EUR??,,????'?????<

The architecture of the restroom/recreation office building follows the agricultural/ranch aesthetic with the use of slump block, a galvalume roof (a 55-percent aluminum-zinc alloy-coated sheet steel) and steel-color accents that match the barn structure. The building?EUR??,,????'?????<

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The 60 x 100 ft. hay barn structure shades the main play zone at Farm Land. It?EUR??,,????'?????<

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Critter Land
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A Mesquite bosque, a native Arizona tree, is adjacent to Critter Land. This shaded picnic area has soft-surface gravel paving. The boulder climbing area, inspired by the local mountains and rock outcroppings, is quite popular. Concrete reptile eggshells and a desert tortoise shell offer more climbing and seating. The 18-inch retaining seatwall surrounding the Critter Land ramada is embedded with prehistoric fossil imagery.

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Large boulders around Critter Land encourage children to climb on natural elements. The ?EUR??,,????'?????<

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City Land
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Historical signage explains that area children during World War II swam in the irrigation canals and exchanged scrap metal for movie tickets to the local theater. Other historical images reflect the first general store in Chandler, children riding bicycles and the fashion of the times. Small trees were planted as street trees, scaled to the young visitors. Fire trucks, city streetlights and traffic signs add to the city experience.

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The farm yard-themed play structure suits Chandler?EUR??,,????'?????<

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Cooling the Heat Island
Environmental design is seen in the green open spaces and plantings. Chandler?EUR??,,????'?????<

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Another design detail incorporating Chandler?EUR??,,????'?????<

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A Destination with a Sense of Place
Tumbleweed Park has become a destination, and Playtopia the anchor. Chandler has provided an exciting, imaginative recreation and playground destination where kids can still be kids.

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Aside from shade, the fountains (Most Dependable Fountains) are the most appreciated amenity in this heat. The smaller child is drinking from the ?EUR??,,????'?????<

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The Team
Client: City of Chandler, Arizona
Park Development and Operations Manager: Mickey Ohland
Park Planning Superintendent: Don Tolle
Design Coordination: Dave McDowell, Aaron Woodward, Kris Kircher, Claud Cluff, Public History
Coordinator: Jean Reynolds
Architectural Design: Architekton, Tempe
Contractor / Construction Manager: Haydon Building Corp., Phoenix
Engineering, Geotechnical: Ricker, Atkinson, McBee, Morman & Associates, Tempe
Irrigation Design: Carl Kominsky Landscape Architect Inc., Tucson
Landscape Architecture, Civil Engineering and Construction Administration:
J2 Engineering and Environmental Design, Phoenix
Project Manager: Jeffrey Velasquez, RLA, ASLA
Lead Designer: Denise Dunlop, ASLA
Landscape Designer: Kevin Wallin
Principal In-Charge: Jeff Engelmann, RLA, ASLA
Conceptual Design: Dean Chambers, RLA, ASLA, QA/QC
Civil Engineering: Jeff Holzmeister, PE, Jason Touchin, PE
Civil Design: Michelle Ross-Touchin
Lighting and Electrical Engineering: Wright Engineering Corp., Chandler
Survey: AZTEC, Phoenix

Vendors
Decomposed Granite: Pioneer Sand Co.
Fencing, Vinyl Split-Rail: Kroy Building Products
Image Walls: Pannier
Irrigation: Hunter, Rainbird, Guardshack
Lighting: Ameron Poles, Day-Bright, Gardco, Philips Lumec
Fabric Shade Structure: Killer Shade
Furnishings and Playground Equipment
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Pavilion and Hay Barn Shade Structures: Star Building Systems
Ramada Structures: Classic Recreation Systems
Water Fountains: Most Dependable Fountains