‘Special place’ planned for disabled

By Richard Burgess, Advocate Acadiana bureau
Published: April 22, 2010, in 2theadvocate.com, produced the The Advocate and WBRZ News 2 Louisiana (an ABC affiliate)
http://www.2theadvocate.com/news/91780784.html

BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA - Work will soon begin on the city's first public playground for children with disabilities.

City-parish officials and the Kiwanis Club of Lafayette, which is helping pay for the project, broke ground Wednesday on Parc Independence in Girard Park.

"It's a special place for people who can't use our normal equipment," Lafayette Parks and Recreation Director Gerald Boudreaux said.

The playground is designed to be accessible to children with mental and physical disabilities, including children who use to wheelchairs, he said.

The playground will be the only one of its kind in the Acadiana region and allow children with disabilities the chance to play as others, said Kemper Bowen, who worked to spearhead the project with the Kiwanis Club of Lafayette.

"All they could do before was watch other children play. Now they can interact," he said.

The playground has ramps that allow for wheelchair access to the specialized equipment and even swings that can accommodate wheelchairs, Bowen said.

He said the equipment is designed to be accessible by children with disabilities but is also intended for other children.

"It's designed for interaction with children of all capabilities," Bowen said.

The groundwork for the park is expected to be complete by October, but there is no firm date as to when the equipment will arrive.

Boudreaux said future upgrades of the playground are planned as funds become available.

"It's something we want to build over three to five years," he said.

Bowen said the Kiwanis Club of Lafayette is also working with city-parish government to plan a second playground for disabled children at another location.

The first phase of the playground costs about $107,000, according to figures from city-parish government.

The park was designed by Lafayette architect Albert Moliere III.