A new Magical Bridge playground is under construction at Rengstorff Park in Mountain View for a predicted opening in the fall.
Magical Bridge playgrounds are built to be accessible to all people, including those with mental or physical disabilities, according to those involved with the project. The Mountain View playground will include an entry zone with a bridge, a tot lot, swing zone, spin zone, innovation zone, slide/climbing zone, playhouse and stage zone. It will also feature a perimeter fence, a rubberized surface, a nature play area under redwood trees and a kindness wall.
Chief executive officer and founder Olenka Villarreal pioneered the first Magical Bridge playground after she had her second daughter Ava, whom she said had varying disabilities. The Palo Alto resident discovered that the majority of playgrounds in the community weren’t working for her daughter.
“I was looking for a playground where I could bring one daughter that has disabilities and my older daughter who does not, and I was looking for a public playground where both of them could enjoy and play together,” Villarreal said. “I discovered that even though all of the playgrounds in my area seem to be compliant to the law, they really didn’t work for my family… and I quickly learned that they didn’t work for many, many people.”
The first Magical Bridge playground was constructed in Palo Alto in 2015. Soon, other cities and communities in the Bay Area and across the world were interested in building their own Magical Bridge playground, leading Villarreal to found the Magical Bridge Foundation in 2016.
Magical Bridge playgrounds feature several elements that make them “all inclusive,” she said. Autism accessibility is often overlooked in traditional playground design, so Magical Bridge includes elements such as perimeter fencing and hideaway huts, according to Villarreal.
“We create perimeter fencing to make sure that some of the guests with autism are safe, we have hideaway huts, so people with autism can also still be part of the playground but experience a little retreat from the act of play, and we have a laser harp that is pleasing to somebody’s ear that feel overstimulated with noise,” Villarreal said. “That’s just one example of how we address the needs of people in our community… a Magical Bridge considers everyone’s needs, with or without disabilities, different age groups and different physical abilities.”
Villarreal added that there has been substantial interest in the construction of a Magical Bridge playground in Los Altos. However, due to concerns from the Los Altos parks and recreation committee, development has been paused. Despite this, support for the potential construction of a Magical Bridge in Los Altos has not wavered.
“We do have some wonderful families in Los Altos that have written asking for a Magical Bridge playground,” Villarreal said. “There is also a wonderful group of Los Altos High School students that have created a Magical Bridge Club, who have also been helping to create some Magical tennis programs.”
Villarreal said that she hopes Magical Bridge playgrounds will, in the near future, not be considered exceptional but rather the norm for playground design.
“I hope that it becomes the right way to design playgrounds,” Villarreal said. “Right now, everything we’re doing is still considered innovative, and why should a playground designed for the whole family be innovative?”
