Send us Tips

The red swings at Green Lake playground

What do you think? (1 Comment) January 19, 2011 at 6:39AM

Curious about the big red swings at the Green Lake playground?

According to a recent blog post written by Seattle City Councilmember Sally Bagshaw, these swings are “universally accessible” equipment.

The swings , which have deep seats and offer support for a child’s back and head, are designed for children with little or no muscle control.

Similar swings are available at several parks across Seattle, and the Department of Parks & Recreation has identified fourteen additional locations with installation potential. “These sites just need a sponsor to help make it a reality,” Councilmember Bagshaw writes. “You can be a sponsor by contacting the Seattle Parks Foundation.”

The Seattle Parks Foundation can be reached at 206-332-9900 or info@seattleparksfoundation.org.

Author:
Location: Green Lake Park
Topics: , ,
What do you think? (1 Comment)
  • Concerned Dad

    Many people call these “banana swings”; I call them a hazard. Too many times, I have seen children dumped out of them. On one trip to View Ridge Park, I witnessed a heavy fiberglass swing dump a child out, then return to lose its considerable momentum when it hit the same child on the back of the head, adding injury to surprise. The design is inherently flawed; the four chains holding the swing make it safe only when used in conjunction with the nylon harness. Once this has been vandalized away, you can be sure it will never be replaced. A swinging child leans forward, the back two chains go slack, and the kid drops out when the swing is in its full back position. A swing should not need instructions, and absent a harness, these swings need instructions…like don’t try to pump, or stay off unless you have little or no muscle control, and are accompanied by an adult. I have watched middle school age kids injure themselves falling off of them while trying to balance on/climb them.

    I have to wonder, if holding a BB gun was deemed beneficial to children with little or no muscle control, would we find these added to our playgrounds too? I am dumbfounded every time I see a park “improved” by the addition of these hazardous swings.