Community Playground Build
Install Your Playground While Building Community
Proud to Work With Communities
We’ve worked with communities around the world on thousands of community build playgrounds and we never tire of the energy and enthusiasm that is poured into these projects. There’s something exciting about watching elected officials, public employees, parents, neighbors, business people and children working together to turn a dream into a beautiful new playground.
Community build playgrounds bring out the best in people. Not only are they building a community gathering space, but they’re helping build community, pride and a sense of ownership. Even more, these volunteers are helping the school or community save on installation costs.
"Landscape Structures made the daunting task of organizing a community build fun and tangible." Project Manager, Factoryville Borough
We understand the importance of making it easy for community members to collaborate on everything from goal setting and design through equipment assembly and maintenance. That’s why we’ve created our Guide to Community Build Playgrounds, which outlines everything including how to recruit and organize the volunteers, gather necessary tools and build a schedule to help execute the installation. Request Guide to Community Build Playgrounds
In addition to our guide, you can count on expert advice from your local playground consultant as well as the team at our headquarters in Delano, Minn. Watch the video below, and get started on your community build playground project today!
Playground products shown in video may not be appropriate for every age group. Playsystems shown in video are for demonstration purposes only. Product configurations may vary.
Video features the process of building the new playground at Annandale Elementary School.
[video: fade into a white screen, three water marked circles sit in each corner of the screen. One circle has a silhouette of a hand print, the second paper dolls holding hands, and the third a silhouette of a child swinging on a swing. In the center of the screen is a circle with an image of a playground build site. Playground posts and large boxes litter the ground as a man stands at a table looking at directions.]
[video: the center circle deflates and incorporates itself into the background. Another large circle appears in the center of the screen with a video clip of a playground post and its clamping systems. That circle deflates and joins next to the first original circle on the screen. A third large center circle appears with a video of a man running a bob cat tractor with a large auger drill digging into the ground. This circle deflates and is placed next to the other deflated circles. A fourth large center circle appears with a video panning across the top of a playground rope climber where children play. The fourth circle deflates and joins the other three circles on the screen.]
[video: Individual letters begin to fall from the top of the screen to spell out a few words. The text reads: Community Build. The four circles then change to silhouetted images. The far-left circle which is lime green has a silhouette of paper dolls holding hands. The next circle to the right which is orange has a silhouette of a hand print. The third circle which is navy blue has a silhouette of a wrench. And the fourth circle which is a dark green has a silhouette of a child swinging on a swing.]
[video: a man stands and speaks to a camera at a playground build site where a bob cat tractor works in the background. A white banner pops up from the bottom right corner with the text reading: Grant DesRoches, Flagship Recreation. Below the text is the four colored circles with their silhouetted images.]
Grant: Hello I’m Grant and I’m with Flagship Recreation, we are the Landscape Structures distributor for Minnesota.
Grant voiceover: People like doing community builds because they can put more money into equipment rather than paying for labor to do it outside their community. It’s also a great benefit because it brings people together and there’s more of a sense of ownership once they put the playground together. They tend to be a fun experience for people to work by.
[video: a man arranges tools on a site work table. Close-up of a man’s hands as he tightens nuts on the bottom of a large spring. Camera switches to the man’s face as he looks down while he tightens the screws. Camera pans across a playground climber as it lays on its paging while two men grab playground pieces in the background. Three men work together to lift the large seat of the OmniSpin off a large pallet. One man holds the top of a O-Zone climbing ring while another man tightens some screws with a drill. To men lift a playground look out barrier upside down to stand it up on the ground. Camera quickly goes back to Grant as he speaks directly to the camera. Scene switch to the playground build site where several posts and decks have been installed. Five men work together to walk a playground post across the work area.]
[video: camera zooms in through the already place playground posts to three men as they set the next playground post in its hole. Camera zooms out from a large group of men as they work together to clamp the playground deck to the placed posts. Camera zooms into the men as they hold up the deck on the posts and make minor adjustments. A man walks over to an upside-down wobble pod and sits on one of the large springs. He reaches over to pat the top of the other spring to encourage the man standing behind him to take a seat with him. The man stands up from the springs at laughs at himself. Camera switches to Grant standing in front of the City of Annandale building addressing the camera.]
Grant: We’re meeting with the Annandale Lions the team leaders.
Grant voiceover: And we’re going to talk about the schedule, talk about the teams and how they’re going to put the playground together and talk about the role of the leaders and also tools and then give them a chance to ask questions if they’ve got it.
[video: Back view of Grant as he stands in front of a group of men as he explains the post and decking connection process. He points to a small example post placed on a table in front of him. Front view as Grant shows a poster of an animated rendering on a finished Evos play structure. Scene switch to ground view of a poster with an animated rendering of the fully finished PlayBooster and Evos playground for Annandale Elementary. The poster is leaned up against the bottom of a small table next to Grants feet. Close-up of a man as he leans his elbows on a table and holding is closed hands up to his mouth. He shakes his head up and down while he listens to the presentation. Scene switch to a close-up of a man’s face as he looks up from the desk to the presenter with just his eyes. Camera switches to another man as he holds his hand over his mouth and leans on the desk while listening to the presentation.]
[video: camera close-up of a tool belt with the Landscape Structures logo printed on it sitting on a table. Several different wrenches sit on the belt. Scene switch to a view across the conference room where a man in a police officer’s uniform talks to the other members in the room. Switch a close-up of a man wearing glasses as he holds his hands out in front of his face and playing with his wedding ring. He can be seen moving his lips possibly asking a question.]
[video: view over a pans shoulder as he opens a folded piece of paper with the playground blue prints and building directions. Back view of grand as he stands in front of the table where the police officer is sitting address the room and referring to a poster he is holding in his hand. Switch to a close-up of the poster with the Evos rendering on it as Grant’s hands point to different blue prints on the side. Camera switches to a back view of the group listening to Grant speak about the playground.]
Grant voiceover: We’re at the site of Annandale Elementary School it’s a new school that will open in the fall. What we’re doing now is preparing the ground site to put in a playground, we’re actually going to be putting in two. This is the site of the five to twelve playgrounds and what you’re see going on is us digging holes.
[video: scene switch to a view of the open sand area where the playground will be built on the side of the new elementary school. Camera zooms in across the open area to a bob cat at it starts to drill large holes with an auger drill. Close-up of an auger laying on the ground while a bob cat wheels can be seen driving by. Camera slowly zooms out from the bob cat as it drills another whole in the ground with the school building in the background. Grant walks up to the bob cat as it backs up to the next spot it needs to drill a hole. Camera switches back to Grant as he speaks to the camera about the playground site. Scene switch to a close-up front view of the bob cat auger as it drills another hole.
Camera pans across a ling of pre-dug holes.]
Grant voiceover: We’ve laid out the playground already, flagging where the holes will go, and the bob cats are now drilling the holes. The other playground is a two to five playground and we have a group down there that is laying out the flags, so we can look at that.
[video: camera pans across the many dug holes as the bob cat continues to drill in the background while two men measure for where the next hole needs to go. Camera view across a large open sand area with many small orange flags blowing in the wind. Full view of the bob cat as it begins drilling another hole. Close-up of the auger as it drills into the dirt. Camera pans down to the ground where many holes have been pre-dug. A man holds a measuring stick in front of the bob cat as it drills a hole. Camera zooms in to the man outside of the bob cat as he pounds a post down into a dug hole. Camera zooms in on the auger as the man outside the bob cat shifts and moves dirt coming out of the hole with his foot.]
Grant voiceover: Once this is done equipment will arrive and we will lay that out. And then Monday morning the build will actually start with the installers.
[video: side view of a large semi-truck backs up a loaded trailer with all the wrapped and packaged playground equipment. Back view of the semi-truck as it continues to back up. Close-up of the bob cat lifting a large pallet off the back of the trailer. A bob cat wheels across the screen with a large pallet. Camera zooms into the tracks of the bob cat as it carries a pallet to the build site. Back view of the bob cat as it continues to wheel a pallet to the build site.]
[video: close-up of the bob cat forks as they slide underneath the pallet. The bob cat swings the large pallet away from the trailer above the camera. Front view of the large pallet completely blocking the bob cat driver as he drives towards the camera. Back view of the bob cat as it moves a large pallet. A man directs the bob cat driver on of to the side. Ground view of the bob cat tracks as then back up after setting down a pallet.]
[video: camera pans across all the pallets with packed playground equipment set out at the build site. Close-up of the top of a box on a pallet with the Landscape Structures logo on the top with text below reading: Better playgrounds. Better world. Screen goes black.]
[video: A Flagship van drives past the camera at the build site. A white banner pops up from the bottom of the screen reading: Build Day. The four colored circles with silhouetted images sit below the text.]
Grant voiceover: We’re here for the start of the build we’ve divided people into four teams, each team has a section of the playground for example the team back here is doing all Evos.
[video: camera pans across a group of men as they listen to instructions for the building process at the build sight. Grant explains to two men a poster with a rendering of a finished playground while they stand among the boxed playground equipment. Camera switches to Grant speaking to the camera about the build day process. He turns around to point at a blue tarp where all the Evos play structure components are laid out.]
Grant voiceover: So, what our first step in the process is just to lay out the equipment so that it’s convenient close to the team members and hopefully close to the part of the playgrounds where we’re going to build it.
[video: Two men carry a section of a Sky Rail climber and set it down next to the other pieces on a blue tarp. Camera pans across a playground posts and climbers as they lay out on their foam packaging. Camera pans across more posts laid out on their foam packaging. Camera pans into a box full of playground equipment packaged in green bubble wrap. Scene switch to a blue tarp with wobble pods, pod stomper, and a Sky Rail climber component have been placed. Grant and a build volunteer grab packages of playground clamps out of a box. A man lifts and lays a foam packing tarp onto the ground. Video back to grand as he talks about the beginning build process.]
Grant: Also, we give each team leader a picture of what the area they’re working and a list of components.
[video: Grant grabs a poster with a rendering of a finished playground and explains it to two build volunteers. Back view of a build volunteer as he clips building instructions to a large poster with a rendering of a finished playground. Camera zooms in on the man’s hands as he clips his papers to the poster. Side view of a man as he writes on a playground blue print while two other man look on. Camera zooms in on the man’s hand as he points with his pencil to certain building instructions on the paper. Front view of Grant as he stands on the other side of a pallet of playground components explaining the playground poster to two build volunteers.]
Grant voiceover: Today it’ll be laying out the equipment and then putting in the posts and then adding on the decks and we hope by four o’clock today that we have the decks and the posts in and concreted.
[video: view of the build area where playground equipment is scattered in boxes and laid out on tarps. Volunteers walk all around looking at the different laid out playground components. View across the build site where a group of men all hold up four posts and attach a deck in the middle of the posts. Camera zooms in on a man wearing a baseball hat and glasses as he holds onto a post and the corner of the decking. Camera back to Grant as he explains his hopes for the day.]
[video: a man wearing a baseball cap and aviator sunglasses speaks to the camera. A white banner pops up from the bottom of the screen reading: Skip Hall, Annandale Lions. The four colored circles with silhouetted images are displayed below the text.]
Skip: It was for me a lay down that Landscape provided all the equipment.
Skip voiceover: Their organization and the labeling and the equipment is just outstanding in my estimation almost anybody even if they don’t know which end of a wrench to use could step in a provide the sweat equity and get this thing done with the help that Landscapes given us.
[video: a volunteer looks down at a paper packet of building instructions while they stand next to a row of laid out playground posts. View around the volunteer’s arm as they point to the paper instructions. Top down view over a man’s shoulder as he writes on a large playground blueprint. Camera closely pans down the rungs of the Sky Rail climber parts laying on a blue tarp. Camera back to Skip as he talks about the ease of building Landscape Structures playground equipment. Three men work together to mount the extension arm of a playground spinner to the Evos support posts. A volunteer digs a pre-drilled hole deeper. Close-up of a man’s hands as he reaches up underneath the playground decking to tighten a bolt.]
[video: a group of volunteers all work together and lift a large Evos arched support post. Two men stand on the top of some placed posts and decks. One of the men reaches over to the other man to hand him a bolt. Grant stands next to a trailer with recycled playground equipment stacked on it. A white banner pops up from the bottom middle of the screen reading: Retro Fit. The four colored circles with silhouetted images are displayed below the text.]
Grant: This part of a playground is an existing playground that’s ten years old.
Grant voiceover: And we were able to save the customer about thirty thousand dollars by reusing the components we touched up some of the stuff but most of its in very good condition.
[video: camera pans across the trailer where the recycled playground climber is laid out. A man’s feet can be seen at the back of the trailer holding to posts. Side view of the trailer as Grant carries the Fish Net climber plastic netting away from the trailer. Close-up of the recycled belted climber with foot and hand holds as it lays folded next to blue playground posts on the trailer. Camera switches back to Grant as he stands by the trailer speaking about the quality and longevity of the playground products.]
Grant: That really is a testimony to the quality of Landscape Structures playgrounds, that we can take a ten-year-old playground and blend it with a new one you know not throw it in the garbage but reuse it and save the customer a lot of money.
[video: a man speaks to the camera while other volunteers continue to build the play structure in the background. A white banner pops up in the lower right of the screen with text reading: Steve Niklaus, Superintendent Annandale Schools. The four colored circles with silhouetted images are displayed below the text.]
Steve: Working with Grant as well as some other people on Landscape Structures.
Steve voiceover: The Lions were able to visit your site and came back with glowing recommendations about the quality of the construction of the product and that’s why we’re here today.
[video: View of Steve as he kicks a playground post to position it in the pre-dug whole. View across the build site where a group of men work together to connect the Sky Rail climb ladders. A man stands at the top of the ladder to connect the ladder posts. A group of volunteers hold an arched Evos support post parallel to the ground getting ready to set it into the ground. View of a woman as she screws nuts onto the bottom of wobble pods sitting on a blue tarp. View across the build site where volunteers stand by the resurrected arched Evos posts while a cement truck drives into the build site in the background. Volunteers hold onto ropes and the arched posts of the Evos structure to finalize their position in the ground.]
[video: close-up of a hand as it rotates a wrench to tighten a bolt on the cast aluminum ball connector for the arched Evos post system. A Man in a safety yellow shirt wearing a hard hat watches as cement slides down the cement truck shoot into a bob cat bucket shovel. Camera zooms into the fast-moving cement as it slides off the end of the cement truck shoot. Front view of the bob cat backing away from the cement truck with a full bucket of cement. Two volunteers shovel cement out of the bob cat bucket into a wood framed box on the ground. Front view of two volunteers as they shovel cement out of the bob cat bucket into the holes with the Evos post systems.]
[video: waist view of a man as he walks a wheelbarrow full of cement towards and pasts the camera. Full pan across the half build PlayBooster play structure as volunteers continue to install components. A woman stands holding a saddle seat spinner in a pre-dug hole. A man tips a wheelbarrow full of cement into the holes for the disc challenge playground bridge. Two other employees hold the ropes and posts while the cement pours into the whole.]
[video: Volunteers stand in the shade on a side walk next to the school building. They two men point to the pre-build play structure next to the side walk. A white banner pops up from the bottom middle of the screen which reads: 2-5 Area. The four colored circles with silhouetted images are displayed below the text.]
[video: view of a man’s legs as he pushes a wheelbarrow across the dirt. View across the build site where volunteers pick up framing for a play structure. Camera close-up of a woman as she carries a green framed section of a playground.]
[video: View of the volunteers filling different post holes with cement at the two to five-year-old playground. A man holds onto the playground welcome sign post as he packs dirt around the base. Fade to black.]
[video: fad into a class of children running to the finished playground. Children climb on the Hemisphere arched rope climber as other children play all over the playground structure in the background. Camera close-up of young girl climbing on the outer bar of the hemisphere climber as other children play on other playground activities in the background. A young boy slides down the roller slide, a group of children wait in line to go down the roller slide. A young boy swings from wheel to wheel on the triple ring fling. A crowded playground is covered in children climbing and playing. Three children work together to spin a group of boys sitting in the Omni spinner. The boys cheer as they are being spun.]
[video: top down view of three children sliding down the cloud burst slide. Steve Niklaus Superintendent Annandale Schools speaks to the camera.]
Steve: Community loves it because this playground is used in the morning before school.
Steve voiceover: It's used throughout the school day particularly heavily at the noon hour is used in the evenings people come to bring their kids here right from the start as being a huge hit for the community.
[video: a large group of children spin on the Omni spin. A of boys climb on the funnel climber net. A young boy sticks his head up in front of the camera and smiles. Close-up of children’s legs as they walk across a clatter bridge. Three children slide down the could burst slide together towards camera. A young boy sits on the sky rail climber smiling and looking at the camera. Camera back to Red talking. A white banner pops up in the lower left of the screen with text reading: Red Peterson Annandale Lions. The four colored circles with silhouetted images are displayed below the text.]
Red: If you drive by here anytime and there are dozens or maybe hundred kids out here learning and playing and having a good time.
[video: Full view of entire play area with a large class of children playing all around. Camera pans left to right of a group of children sitting and standing on a Disc Challenge bridge and looking at the camera. Camera close-up of a group of kids all hanging and swinging rung to rung on a horizontal ladder.]
Skip Hall voiceover: You can hear behind me the noise and the chatter going on its continuing it's fun to come down the street and see kids swarming over this equipment.
[video: close-up of a child’s tennis shoes as they stand on a cargo net rope. A young girl smiles sways back and forth towards the camera on a bobble rider. Skip Hall lion’s member speaking to camera.]
[video: view of the fully finished two to five-year-old playground area as children play all around. Two young boys sit and bounce back and forth on the tuff riders fire engine spring rider. Young boy slides down small slide towards camera. Camera follows children from the side as they walk up playground steps to a slide. Camera follows young girl through C-Crawl tunnel. A young boy squeezes by the girl in the tunnel. A young boy puts his face to the periscope panel to look across the playground. Close-up of a young boy’s face as he holds onto a talk tub and shouts into it. Camera pulls back to a full view of the playground with children playing. Fade to black.]
[video: fade into the open dirt build site of the playground. A white banner pops up from the middle of the screen with text reading: From recruiting and organizing volunteers to planning the installation. The four colored circles with silhouetted images are displayed below the text. Scene switch to a man kneeling at a tarp organizing playground components. A white banner pops up from the middle of the screen with text reading: we’ll help you complete a successful project. The four colored circles with silhouetted images are displayed below the text.]
[video: three men carry a corner deck piece across the build sight away from the camera. A woman stands on a ladder at the top of the disc challenge bridge tightening a bold. A man stands below her holding the rope she is connecting. Close-up of the back of a volunteers red shirt with the white font reading: Better playgrounds. Better world. Fade to black.]
[video: fade into a man holding a level to the side of a playground post. He turns to the camera and smiles and gives a thumbs up. Fade out and back into children playing on wobble pods, pod steppers, and climbing on the Sky Rail climber. A boy runs up in front of the camera, he jumps and stops to investigate the camera. A young girl flips herself around a chin up bar while her friend holds herself up next to her on the bar. A girl climbs up a ladder to playground decking where there is a red Permalene panel that reads Annandale elementary, and an image of the school cardinal mascot.]
[video: full view of half basketball court with children playing basketball with the playground behind them. Screen goes black and white text appears reading: Thank you Annandale Elementary and Lions for letting us tag along. The Landscape Structures logo appears in the middle of the screen.]