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Couch Park is set to get a new playground accessible to children in wheelchairs, and Portland Parks and Recreation has redesigned the project to spare three elm trees Northwest Portland neighbors rallied to protect.
The story of the elm trees is in this month's Northwest Examiner.
Initially, the parks bureau planned to chop down the large elms near the inclusive playground for fear they may fall. Now, the bureau will cable them together to reduce the risk of injury, the neighborhood newspaper reports.
Speaking as the mother of a 3-year-old child, the addition of an inclusive playground is great news for Portland's stroller set.
Harper's Playground in Arbor Lodge, after which the new Couch Park site is modeled, is one of the best in Portland—the stuff of storybooks where children of all physical abilities delightfully play together. Harper's Playground has a slide built into a hill—no ladder needed—so children in wheelchairs can roll to the top, then gleefully slide to the bottom.
Couch Park neighbors didn't always see the benefits, according to the newspaper, owing to the loss of the trees and a few other proposed changes.
The new playground is set to open in 2018.
Willamette Week