Aside from wanting a small play structure for preschool children on a rooftop, this Lower East Side settlement house, that once served the Jewish immigrant community at the turn of the century and many other groups since, had to solve a serious safety problem. A child had been severely injured when she fell and hit her head on one of the protruding fence posts that had been installed with unprotected sharp edges facing the space. Replacing the posts would have been too costly so we were left with covering them in some way. Instead of just solving a safety problem, we decided to use the solution as an opportunity to add fun and utility to the space.

A simple, 2 foot high, plywood fence was attached to the chain link surrounding the whole area and painted rolling hill green and sky blue. This then served as a backdrop for the attachment of games, dramatic play scenery, seating, storage and decorative graphics.

On a higher roof of the Alliance complex we built another free standing play structure that surrounded a horizontal pipe maze for low level climbing.