Sunridge Park in Rancho Cordova, CA, designed by O’Dell Engineering, was featured by the California Special Districts Association on their YouTube channel. The association produced a short 4 minute film about the park’s socially inclusive features, the design approach, and its value to the local community. Interviews with Cordova Recreation & Park District board members, staff, and O’Dell staff are included.

Sunridge Park remains one of O’Dell’s most treasured projects! This approximately 6.5 acre park in Rancho Cordova is located adjacent to a preserved area of natural landscape and along a stretch of utility easements creating unique challenges to site and recreational planning. The park is designed to fit into its innate California foothill landscape through the use of native shrub mixes, no-mow grasses, unique site structures, subtle visual cues and color pallet. The park includes a soccer-field sized open recreational space, picnic facilities, restroom facilities, a splash pad, and an integrated socially inclusive playground with custom seek and find play features in a grass maze. Sunridge Park was designed to create an environment where children, adults, and teenagers can all enjoy recreation without barriers.

O’Dell Engineering is an avid supporter and promoter of inclusive play environments. The emphasis of socially inclusive playgrounds (a term coined by O’Dell Engineering) is not on helping children with disabilities to adjust to and accept the play environment, but rather designing the play environment to meet the needs and abilities of the child. Inclusive play environments are a fundamental statement about social values and children’s right to play.

We are thrilled to see Sunridge Park’s continued success!

To watch the video, visit our YouTube channel here.

To learn more about socially inclusive play design, click here.