Agenda - Parks and Recreation Commission - 08/12/2021

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Riverdale Park Riverdale Park is a neighborhood park located in southern Ramsey along Riverdale Drive (just south of U.S. 10) between CSAH 56 / Ramsey Boulevard and CSAH 57 / Sunfish Lake Boulevard. Its playground was built in 1991, and one of the few in Ramsey that was funded by Tax Increment Financing (when that was permitted). The playground uses pea gravel for surfacing. An interesting aspect of this park, is it's location along the National Mississippi River Trail, and it's connection to the nearby Regional Park The playground consists of three main components —two distinct play structures and one swing set —as well as four other components —a concrete camel sculpture, an excavator toy, and two spring -riders (one in the shape of a horse, the other in the shape of a bulldozer. The four components are in fair condition (however the concrete sculpture does have small cracks). The swing set has two bays with two swings each (two bucket swings and two belt swings in separate bays). The two talk tubes linking the two main play structures are deteriorating. The smaller play structure consists of two points of entry —a transfer surface and a staircase, both with handrails and two slides one with two parallel tracks and one with a hump. One of the transfer surfaces is connected to a trail via a series of mats laid on top of the pebbles that comprise the playground surface. The top of the structure contains a house -like feature with two walls (each with a window), a bench, and a table. There is also a steering wheel and an interactive sensory component where children can customize animals by rotating nine blocks in a 3 x 3 grid, attached to three parallel bars. A similar sensory component is located at the bottom of the structure. The larger play structure has a corkscrew climber and two slides one straight with a single hump and one curved 360 degrees. Additionally, there is a set of monkey bars with eleven straight bars and a track -ride. Both are in good condition, though there is a small area on the grip for the track - ride with chipped paint. The transfer surfaces are in good condition but there are some accessibility concerns. The play set is not accessible via a flat surface and the transfer platforms are spaced vertically from one another by 18 to 24 inches. The six transfer surfaces are triangular and arranged together in a hexagonal shape with the last three being level with one another, forming a trapezoid. This top platform is alternatively accessible via a ladder formed by three slots cut into a wall, which is supplemented by two handholds. Even with the handholds, there are still accessibility concerns. Figure 50: Riverdale Park Playground 23