Babble

I have a nephew is about to turn 8 and a niece who is about to turn 1 who live in Augusta, GA. When i go down to visit them and my family there, all i sum the area up to be is your typical suburb: quiet, friendly neighbors, and kids riding their bikes up and down the street going to each others' homes to play. But it never dawned on me until recently that there is no park or playspace within walking distance for these kids to go to.

How many people here dont have a playground, park or rec center that their kids could walk down the block to? Where do kids in your neighborhood play?

If you dont have on in your area, you should build one. I did a build a little over a year ago that was put together with the help of a nonprofit called KaBOOM! They give out grants, provide training and have a ton of resources (like how to guides) that you can get for free. Check them out at www.kaboom.org.

We have a few.  There's one on our corner, in fact, but it is in disrepair and is a hangout for dealers and the deranged.  The city is putting a big fence up around it, and I'm sad to say I'm glad about that.

A much nicer park is a brisk 25-minute walk away, which is good exercise when I'm lazy enough to bother.
 

We are lucky that in our neck of the woods we have a handful of parks that are all within walking distance. We have two playgrounds that are within three blocks of our apartment and there are quite a few bigger parks and green spaces that are about a 20 minute walk away. That's the beauty of living in the city -- although I do kind of think it's weird that my son has to go to a park to see grass and trees.

Yes, there are several ringing the BQE. (expressway). I never see any kids at them though, and I wonder about the air/soil quality. Anyone in New York know if that's a 311 call or how I'd investigate further?

Several... I believe Portland is known for its density of parks... Within two blocks, a super small but cute one with baby swings, which is all that matters to us right now. 5 blocks to a much bigger park with a decent-size play area. Right now, iut's su[per snowy here (which is rare) but by Spring, I'm pretty sure my little guy will be walking and I know he'll be much more active in playgrounds, so we should have fun.