Lynnwood's accessible playground opens after five years

A west Edmonton community opened its first fully accessible playground Saturday, ending a five-year planning and construction effort that will let children with disabilities play alongside their peers.

The Lynnwood Community League raised approximately $1.1 million in grants and community fundraising to build the facility, which features wheelchair-accessible equipment, a communication board, and adaptive swings.

Liz Lahaye, whose 12-year-old son Francis has cerebral palsy, said the old playground was impossible for him to use safely. "He's completely non-ambulatory, so he's unable to walk there on his legs," she said. "Before it was accessible, I jumped off, my head cut open to pieces off my forehead, which was actually its scab and would keep bleeding every time. It was almost torturous for him previously."

Francis described the previous experience: "Just given you know he'd have to watch the other kids play. He wasn't able to get up to a lot of the equipment."

The new playground has transformed his relationship with outdoor play. Lahaye said Francis now rediscovered his love of playing outside. "Friends and peers ran over to him," she said. "He's able to roll himself onto a lot of the elements of the playground. Definitely has brought up his spirits. Definitely made him more socially able to be around his friends."

Justin Duval, vice-president of the Lynnwood Community League, said the facility represents a broader commitment. "We've created an environment where everyone deserves to play," he said. Councillor Thu Parmar of Ward Sipiwiyiniwak hopes the playground becomes a standard for inclusion across Edmonton neighborhoods.