Lions Volunteer Park

Video features a Landscape Structures inclusive playground at Lions Volunteer Park in Hugo Minnesota

[video: scene fades into a large concrete wall connected to a black metal fence. The wall reads “City of Hugo, Lions Volunteer Park”. Children play on a play structure in the background. Scene fades to a woman in a blue shirt as she talks about the park. White text fades into the lower left corner of the screen reading “Shayla Denaway, Hugo Parks Planner”.]

Shayla: Lions Park was actually the home of the very first playground in Hugo.

Shayla voiceover: The vision for a total park reconstruction and a new playground kind of evolved over ten years or so. And we knew that we wanted on of the biggest and best playground that, in Hugo to be in this location. We really like the layout of this playground. There’s a lot of landscape architecture that went into this playground. You know with the plantings and the trees, hopefully eventually providing shade.

[video: camera pans forward with an elevated shot over the entire play area. Families play at all the different activities. Scene switches to a ground view of a pan from left to right from a zipline to a mother spinning her son is a spinner chair. A young girl climbs up a slight hillside with textured miniature hills for foot hold. A girl climbs on a rope climber. A boy giggles as he rides down a large roller slide. Children climb through tunnels and play domes. Camera switches back to a full elevated view of the park showing the plants and trees amongst the playground.]

Shayla voiceover: The planning team really wanted it to be themed around Hugo. And one of the features that they custom designed for us was on the We-Go-Round the panels are actually inspired by Hugo landscapes and real animals and plants that you would find in our Hugo community.

[video: a boy scoops sand with a manual excavator seat. Scene switches to a view through leaves on a tree blowing in the wind. The camera focused on a playground panel in the distance with a nature scene on it and the City of Hugo logo. A boy and girl stand at the top of a playground behind the panel. A girl climbs up port through circular belted disc landings on a play structure. A young boy rides down a small dual landed slide. Two mothers sit inside the manual playgrounds carousel as a young girl pushes to spin them. A boy runs over and jumps on the carousel to ride along. Camera focuses on the side panels of the carousel showing nature scenes with animals, lakes, and rivers.]

Shayla voiceover: It’s just been really well received and we’re really proud as a community to be able to have this for Hugo residents.

[video: a boy and girl play on outdoor musical instruments. Children climb up a structure made of ropes, belted disc landings with a slide at the top. Scene switches to a mother as she talks about the park. White text fades into the lower right corner of the screen reading “Tiffany Goodchild, Local parent”.]

Tiffany: I’m a mom of a child with a disability so Carter was our second born child, and he was born with an unexpected brain injury. Resulting in a severe form of cerebral palsy.

Tiffany voiceover: So, finding accessible play options as a family is really challenging. And as a family of four now, play is such a big part of our world. But it was really important for me to be able to pick pieces of equipment that I knew would really work for a child as severely disabled as Carter. And so, they were so receptive to my ideas. In fact, I toured a lot of the local playgrounds in the metro area and just brought them ideas that I liked.

[video: a girl grabs a handful of sand and holds it to Carter’s hand so he can feel the texture. A boy dances as he plays an outdoor xylophone. A boy crouches to climb through a crawl tunnel. A girl sits at the top of a large slide. She rides down past the camera. Camera pans left to right showing two play structures with large orange slides. Two girls swing and hang from chin lifting bars. A boy and girl crouch together and dig in the sand excavating a concrete disk designed with dinosaur bones. As a boy climbs up a climber on a play structure a young girl rides down a small slide. Camera switches to a full elevated rotating pan of the entire play space of the park.]

Tiffany voiceover: This adaptive zipline, Carter loves movement he loves inputs he loves spinning. And so, anything with a deep seat is really helpful because he doesn’t have a lot of trunk control but we use an adaptive seat and so because of the way that the seats are designed. We can adapt even the adaptive and so, there is not just one thing for Carter to do here he can do teeter totters, he can do the accessible zipline. He has swings he has a wheelchair marry go round.

[video: a mother pushes her son in the accessible seat on the zipline. A mother pushes her son on a spinner seat while another boy also spins in a second spinner seat. Scene switches to Tiffany spinning Carter in the spinner seat with his adaptive chair. Tiffany smiles and Carter excitedly smiles as he spins. A girl helps Carters hand to move over her own and to feel the sand on a play sand table. Camera pans a lower playing area with activities for younger children. Children play all around. A Grandfather sits across his Granddaughter on a multi person teeter totter. The Grandma helps push the back of her Granddaughters seat on the teeter totter, so they go up and down. With a view across the park a girl pushes Carter in his wheelchair on the walking path incorporated into the play area. Scene switches to two mothers as they slowly spin with their children on the accessible carousel ride.]

Tiffany voiceover: No matter where he’s at in the playground he can be apart of it. He can be apart of the action and so that is what I really love about this place there’s just so much for all kids.

[video: a girl sits on one of the belted landings as a boy climbs up through the port hole. Scene fades out and back into a view of children riding down a large slide. Scene fades out and back into a girl as she peaks through a tunnel through the center of a small hill, sticking her tongue out and smiling. Scene fades out and back into a full areal view of Lions Volunteer Park as families play all over. Screen jumps to white. A black vertical line draws itself on the center of the screen. The Flagship Recreations logo slides out to the right of the line. Then the Landscape Structures logo slides out to the left of the line. Text fades in below both logos reading: For a better tomorrow we play today. Screen fades to black and video ends.]