Bringing Back their Playground: Collaborative
Design of the Brown School Playlot
1997
The playlot at the William Brown Elementary School on Chicago’s
Near West Side was dilapidated and abandoned after years of neglect. Today,
thanks to a unique public/private partnership between the City of Chicago,
corporate donors, an architectural firm, and the City Design Center, a
new basketball court, play areas, and colorful pillars welcome children
to the playground.
The City Design Center organized a collaborative design process for
UIC faculty and students, Skidmore Ownings & Merrill, Architects-Engineers-Planners
(SOM), and students, teachers, and staff at Brown School. The architecture
students, supervised by faculty, worked under the guidance of SOM professionals
who donated their time and office space. The design team engaged Brown
School participants in design workshops to elicit their ideas. According
to Toni Griffin of SOM, the students were particularly forthcoming: “The
kids, whose suggestions were very important, did not hesitate at all in
expressing their fun way of thinking, and this was what made the workshop
process a great success.” Construction of the playlot began in the
Fall of 1995 with funds and materials donated by the City of Chicago,
Lever Brothers Company, and Jewel Food Stores. Mayor Daley dedicated the
playlot in May of 1996. The play-lot has proved popular with Brown School
students: “I really like the yellow pole you can slide down,”
said Chemere, a third-grader.
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Map of Chicago with project location
Brown School student's drawing
of
her wishes for the playlot
Chicago Mayor Richard
M. Daley dedicating
the Brown School playlot
Site plan of the Brown School
playlot design
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City Design Center Affiliated Faculty
Edward Deam, Professor, School of Architecture
Roberta Feldman, Professor, School of Architecture, and Director, City
Design Center
Collaborating Professionals
Philip Enquist and Toni Griffin, Skidmore Ownings & Merrill, Architects-Engineers
Planners
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