Cupertino resident Alicia Schober got teary-eyed at the opening of a new, all-inclusive playground at Jollyman Park earlier this month. It would have provided another outlet for her son’s sensory needs if it had been available when he was growing up.
As soon as the playground’s gate opened on June 13, children, adults and older people rushed in to hop on the spherical spinner, scale the blue climbing tower and kick their feet on the swings. The playground is a first for Cupertino and was built for people of all ages and abilities — and is the newest addition in Santa Clara County’s quest to uplift accessibility for its more than 170,000 residents with disabilities, according to 2023 American Community Survey data.
“There are few places that everyone’s welcome, and this is one of them,” Schober told San José Spotlight.
The playground features four swing types, with some big enough for adults, wheelchair accessibility and a sign with pictures for nonverbal park-goers. It was built by MIG at a cost of $5.4 million, and is funded by roughly $1 million from the state and nearly $1.5 million from Santa Clara County, along with city funds and $25,000 from PG&E.
@sanjosespotlight As soon as Cupertino’s new, all-inclusive playground at Jollyman Park opened on June 13, children, adults and older people rushed in to hop on the spherical spinner, scale the blue climbing tower and kick their feet on the swings. The Cupertino playground was built for people of all ages and abilities — and is the newest addition in Santa Clara County’s quest to uplift accessibility for its more than 170,000 residents with disabilities, according to 2023 American Community Survey data. The playground features four swing types, with some big enough for adults, wheelchair accessibility and a sign with pictures for nonverbal park-goers. Read more at SanJoseSpotlight.com. #inclusive #playground #disability #accessibility #inclusiveplayground #cupertino #siliconvalley
Schober first envisioned the playground in 2016 as part of a community leadership initiative. All-inclusive playgrounds weren’t as widespread in the county then, and Schober’s idea caught the attention of former District 5 Supervisor Joe Simitian. He spearheaded the grant program for all-inclusive playgrounds in 2017, which has since allocated $20 million toward the effort countywide. The county now has 24 all-inclusive playgrounds at parks and schools in cities including San Jose, Palo Alto, Mountain View, Morgan Hill, Sunnyvale, Santa Clara and Campbell.
The playground at Jollyman Park in Cupertino adds one to the West Valley, which only has a few. That’s significant for Schober and her adult son Nathan, who was diagnosed with ADHD as a child and struggled with sensory processing issues.
“You can be a quiet citizen pushing for good,” Schober said. “As long as you’re persistent, you can make things happen. Each one of us has the opportunity to influence, to make big things happen.”
Nathan told San José Spotlight a playground like this would have given him another way to express himself. He’s proud of his mom and said it’s a win for the disabled community.
“This is exactly what they need and exactly what they deserve,” he told San José Spotlight.
While Nathan likely won’t use the playground much as an adult, other families with adult children in the community will.
Cupertino resident Minna Xu said the playground is vital for her adult son, who is on the autism spectrum. He can use the adult-sized slides and swings to help with his sensory needs. Xu said he can get easily overstimulated without that outlet, adding it’s important for the community to know there are adults who need this. Nearly 70,000 residents in the county have a cognitive disability like Xu’s son, according to 2023 data.
“(People) didn’t tend to realize there’s such community needs,” Xu told San José Spotlight. “But this playground raised the awareness, and after that, our city decided to bring more all-inclusive elements to other parks.”
Mayor Liang Chao said the playground sends an important message: Cupertino welcomes everyone.
“We (wanted) to create something where you come and you feel you belong, not only in this playground, but also the city,” she told San José Spotlight.
Other recently finished all-inclusive projects include the playgrounds at Emma Prusch Farm Park in San Jose and Central Park in Santa Clara, which opened this spring.
Simitian said this is one of the few times he had an idea that worked out as intended during his time as supervisor. He termed out in 2024. He wants inclusivity to be a countywide movement spurred on by local nonprofits, including Magical Bridge Foundation, which specializes in creating all-inclusive playgrounds and parks.
“Each and every one of these playgrounds can be a model that communities look to and say, ‘You know, yes, we want to do that,'” Simitian told San José Spotlight.
Olenka Villarreal, Magical Bridge Foundation founder, said that message is important to keep the momentum going for residents who need accessible spaces. The nonprofit has playgrounds opening at Foothill College, Ravenswood Middle School in East Palo Alto and the Morgan Autism Center in San Jose.
“Chances are each of us knows somebody that benefits from thoughtful design, and so when we talk about creating public spaces as important as a public playground, that sort of sets the tone how your family is welcomed into this community,” Villarreal told San José Spotlight. “For us, of course, it is all about the equity.”
Contact Annalise Freimarck at [email protected] or follow @annalise_ellen on X.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.