Lafayette Play Area

15 years after building the original Lafayette Play Structure, The Contra Costa Jewish Day School invited Barbara back to design a second play area for older students to enjoy.

The original structure was built to utilize an unused space in a courtyard of the school and provide immersive play for the younger students. 

The school recently built a new recreation area on their campus and once again had unused space available. Knowing Barbara's expertise in building imaginative play areas in unusual spaces. Barbara assessed 4 potential sites on the campus for the new play area. Barbara assembled a team of play experts; Structural Engineer, Play Safety Consultant and Landscape Achitect to select the final site.

Barbara then designed a simple yet fun climbing play area composed of three freestanding and removeable climbing structures:

• Hand-Over-Hand Bars: 12 foot long hand-over-hand bars set in a rectangular 3 foot wide frame at a 7 foot height.

• Triangular Rope Net Climb consisting of three 8 foot wide x 8 foot long x 7 foot high redwood frams with rope netting lashed to the frames, set up and attached in triangular shape for up-and-over-and-down climbing and/or bouldering.

• Angular Rock Climbing Wall with four separate 8 foot long x 6 foot high walls set up and attached to each other at challenging angles, with approximatley 48 rock holds attached to each side for up-over-and-down climbing and/or bouldering.

What is bouldering, you ask? Bouldering is a form of rock climbing that is performed on small rock formations or artificial rock walls without the use of ropes or harnesses.