Concrete Solutions
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Building community through inclusive play
Playgrounds and features such as splash pads are beautiful additions to community parks. Traditional improvements tend to fall into two categories—play areas for small children and sports fields, such as soccer or baseball fields. While sports fields often cater to a wide age range, they tend to separate age groups and ability levels and promote structured “sport” rather than less-structured play.
The introduction of concrete games has blurred the lines creating space for a much wider demographic to play in an unstructured way. Using concrete to build well-known games such as table tennis, chess, cornhole, foosball and shuffleboard has pushed the envelope of the traditional playground. Gathered around a couple table tennis tables, one may find 6-year-olds on up to retirees enjoying a game of ping pong throughout the day.
Using durable materials to build ping pong tables has literally changed the game! Gone are the flimsy garage tables of the 1980s that would disintegrate in the presence of moisture. Even the sturdier community center tables are no match for weather and public use. With concrete tables, the game has come front and center to the community park.
Concrete game tables attract a wide mix of players and when arranged together can create a community center that provides a great platform for play as well as a social gathering area that brings people together with friendly competition to create a touchpoint for interaction. One may see a grandfather teaching a youngster how to play or kids playing together. In several cities, informal groups gather as a “club” for more serious users at different times.
Bravado Outdoor Products has been supplying North America with concrete games and has largely introduced this concept into America and Canada. Concrete games are the only focus of the company and they have introduced a wide variety of games. The product line includes table tennis, foosball, cornhole, chess, Chinese checkers, backgammon and shuffleboard. They have even built a concrete octagon poker table by special order.
By recreating classic games in durable materials, parks are able to expand their offerings for play! Concrete games span the gap between traditional playground demographics, college students, adults, and seniors. It’s very common to see all these groups use a ping pong table or cornhole boards during a day. The price point for concrete games is reasonable as well. It’s a solution that lasts for decades and creates community using well-loved games in a new format, making them an ideal community-building option for local parks.