Mechanicsburg-based Charter Homes and Neighborhoods has been installing playgrounds in its developments for years. But over time, says Charter president Rob Bowman, the company has seen them become less attractive and increasingly underused.
So the company went on a mission to create outdoor spaces people could enjoy as much as their homes. The result is the 1.5-acre TerraPark in its Walden neighborhood in Mechanicsburg. Charter broke ground last week on the natural playground, which integrates earth, rocks and natural materials to create a play-space, and is believed to be the first of its kind nationally to be built as part of a new-home neighborhood.
“Playgrounds today often feel structured and much different than the places I think of when I was a kid,” says Bowman. “Creating a space where creativity, imagination and being outdoors can all be combined was what really made the idea a great one.”
Charter partnered with New Hampshire-based National Playgrounds Company, which designed TerraPark. Its design principles are based on interviews with more than 5,000 children and scores of research studies about how children play and the benefits of play.
Charter, Central Pennsylvania’s largest independent homebuilder, considers itself a statewide leader in designing and building neighborhoods that consider the natural surroundings as much as square footage. It closed on 177 homes last year and has sold 75 homes in Walden, a 171-acre neighborhood that features a nature preserve, recreation park, fitness center and gathering hall.
“We believe we have an opportunity and responsibility to add to our collective sense of place, rather than making everything look the same,” says Bowman.
Source: Rob Bowman, Charter Homes and Neighborhoods
Writer: Joe Petrucci