The Theme was chosen... by YOU!

Community Engagement Display for Playground Equipment Preferences, Showcasing Three Themes: Theme 1 Features Adventure Elements, Theme 2 Includes Climbers and Swings, and Theme 3 Highlights Modern Designs. Participants Place Dots to Indicate Their Favorite Theme, with Theme 2 Currently Leading.

A lot has happened since our last newsletter! Gateway Engineers and the Borough are nearing the final stages of the design process for the playground project. We’ve progressed from Schematic Design (SD), through Design Development (DD), and are now diving into the final phase: Construction Documents (CD). This means we’re getting very close to having a full set of plans that a contractor can use to bring the project to life.

Kids Pick

We don’t design in a vacuum—community input is at the heart of this process. Over the past few months, we’ve hosted a number of public engagement events (one that was a kid-only event) to hear directly from residents and neighbors. 

Getting Feedback

This included fun activities like a sticker exercise to help identify the preferred playground theme, as well as an online survey to reach even more voices.

Design Ideas

During the Design Development phase, Gateway created three unique, hand-drawn design concepts. These were presented to the Committee, which led to a thoughtful discussion and ultimately a fourth, consensus concept that blended the best elements from each original idea. This final concept was drafted using CAD (computer-aided drafting), helping the team better understand the real-world scale and layout of the space.

And the results are...

The response was clear from residents, kids and the playground steering committee: Dormont overwhelmingly wants a wooden castle-style playground, just like the one so many remember from the 1990s. We’re thrilled to be working together to shape a space that reflects both the memories and the future of the community.