Dresden. Carrot meets turnip – that is the theme of the new playground in Altdobritz. The orange-colored vegetables adorn the slide, swing and the wooden climbing combination – the carrots in the old town center are supposed to remind of the rural past of the village. The aging facility has been redesigned since November, and is aimed primarily at children between the ages of six and twelve. The benches and the beds, which are planted with perennials, are also new. Small wooden walkways that the little ones can walk over are reminiscent of the pond that used to be at this point.
Overall, the area is now larger and thus takes up the spatial structure of the original village green. When designing the playground, the residents were allowed to express their wishes in two workshops. The new playground in Altdobritz cost around 190,000 euros. It is part of the large-scale Blue Ribbon Geberbach project, which will create a completely new leisure landscape along the renatured waters from Prohlis to the Elbe in the coming years.
Therefore, the city was able to use money from the urban development program Zukunft Stadtgrün for this playground. Further projects for the new green corridor are to follow. “Bit by bit, we will not only bring the Geberbach back to the daylight entirely out of pipes and canals, but also carefully bring the landscape to life,” explains Environment Mayor Eva Jähnigen (Greens).
Corona time shows great need among families
The Dresden residents are also involved in the other playground projects, says Ines Pochert, chief planner at the Office for Urban Greenery and Waste Management. A total of 20 systems were redesigned or newly built in the past year with the participation of local residents. Eva Jähnigen even speaks of a record, both in terms of the scope of the construction projects and the financial resources that were used for them. “It was important to me that we increase the pace, because the Corona period has shown how important this offer is for the Dresden families,” said Jähnigen. But seniors would also often use the seating in the facilities.
In view of closed sports facilities and, until recently, fitness studios, there is a high demand for corresponding offers in the area of sports. In the new Rathauspark in Löbtau, which has now been opened, there is now real fitness equipment. Sports such as calisthenics, parcours and skating are new trends, explains Ines Pochert. For example, a fitness course is to be built in Striesen, and the athletes can have a say in the design. “But our top priority is the safety of the playgrounds. We pay attention to this during the planning phase. The playgrounds are later checked regularly.”
In 2020 the city invested a total of around 800,000 euros in the playground projects. The most expensive was the system on Magdeburger Strasse at 570,000 euros, but was paid for entirely with subsidies. In Dresden there are currently 219 municipal offers of this type, and since 2013 26 new playgrounds have been added.
Twelve more construction projects will follow this year. In accordance with the playground concept, they are initially implemented where there are no such offers. For example on the Leubnitzer Höhe, on Tauernstrasse, in Park Gehestrasse, in Friedrichstadt on Magdeburger Strasse, in Löbtau, in Weixdorf and in Schönborn. These playgrounds were also financed from the budget of the city districts and localities.
Skater facility planned in Klotzsche
These playgrounds will be newly built or reconstructed this year:
- Leubnitz-Neuostra, Leubnitzer Höhe, 120,000 euros
- Leubnitz-Neuostra, Heiligenbornstrasse, 130,000 euros
- Laubegast, Tauernstrasse, 350,000 euros
- Striesen, Hermann-Seidel-Park, 420,000 Euro
- Löbtau, Altlöbtau: second construction phase, 47,000 euros
- Grid lake, Oskar-Seyffert-Strasse, 85,000 euros
- Radeberger Vorstadt, Waldspielplatz Albertpark, 386,000 euros
- Cotta, Hebbelstrasse, 170,000 euros
- Outer new town, Alaunplatz/Boulderhügel, 120.000 Euro
- Johannstadt, Käthe-Kollwitz-Ufer, 86,000 euros
- podeis, Playground and fairground, 230,000 euros
- Pieschen, Pestalozziplatz, 95,000 euros
