Carr Everbach's Favorite Playgrounds

This exceptionally helpful little site is almost a playground journal, a pocketbook of notes kept by Carr Everbach, co-chair of the playground committee for the Main Line Unitarian Church in 2002. The photos of the favorite playgrounds are nice, but better are the thoughts he records as he critiques them and the notes of the playground committe, which are a rare insight into the thoughts of a lay/amateur/non-designery group as they seek to make a better playground for their church. The dispute about different playground elements (some like rocks, some don't; some think swings are a hazard, some love them) recorded from a church meeting is instructive as well. The effort and research they put into their quest are impressive, and I only wish there were photos of their final result!

Photos above are of a playground in Concord Township, PA, built by Robert Leathers and Associates in 1992. It has some excellent DIY ideas, including embedded tractor tires, a climbing tower made by covering chains with auto radiator hose, and a bouncy bridge made from a sheet of super-tough neoprene.