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Mitchell Park

Client: City of Windsor
Location: Windsor, Ontario
Completion Date: 
Fall 2016

Identified for renewal by the City of Windsor, local citizens advocated for a natural-themed playground in this busy and active downtown neighbourhood near the Detroit River.  A desire to educate and advocate for the threatened Monarch butterfly resulted in the thematic choice of a butterfly’s transformation as the basis for the park.  By integrating landscape features that represent the lifecycle stages of a butterfly, organic lines and shapes are utilized to abstractly represent metamorphosis as well as a flower, milkweed and a leaf.

The park integrates a variety of play features in this cohesive design with the use of pathways, natural trails and boardwalks. The concept design includes multiple play zones for children of various ages and abilities: a large log jam® challenges older kids who enjoy the thrill of heights and the daring opportunity to transverse log beams that are more than seven feet in the air.  A caterpillar climber invites younger children and two hill slides, one large and one small, can be accessed via tiered steppers or navigation up the poured-in-place rubber slope.  Swings, a sand and water play area plus a caterpillar boardwalk are fun features for toddlers and multiple places for seating and quiet reflection round out the playscape.