YOUR FORUM FOR PLAY, SPORTS UND LEISURE AREAS
This forest playground not only has great slides, swings, sandpits, wooden courses, ropeways, climbing walls and water games, but is also situated in a beautiful green area with tall trees and breathtaking nature.
The Bambesch playground is well-known in Luxembourg City. Many Luxembourgers remember the site from their own childhood and youth and still visit it today together with their children and grandchildren.Today's playground was used for recreational purposes at the beginning of the 20th century. The first forest playground was built in 1968 with play elements such as a large swing, a knight's castle and extensive sandpits.
Over the years, a lot of equipment was replaced, new equipment was added to the area, but some parts were also maintained and repaired. In the end, the playground had become outdated, disorganised and without a guiding design theme. This was also recognised by the Board of Aldermen of the City of Luxembourg, who decided to redesign and renovate this historic site.
The landscape architecture firm Schwarze und Partner from Krefeld in Germany was commissioned to develop the project design. In close collaboration with the City of Luxembourg and the Service Forêts, Schwarze und Partner developed a playground concept which breathed new life into this site, preparing it for the next generation. The previous public transport connection via bus route 33 was extended by a new bus stop ("Bambësch/centre sportif") as part of the redesign, so that visitors can reach the playground directly from 9:00 to 21:00.
1. Conceptual ideas for the new playground
1.1 Urban historical context
The new playground should be designed in line with the capital's cultural and historical heritage by focusing on striking historical buildings, natural features and creating references to local legends and historical events. In this way, elements of the city's history should be brought closer to the children and strengthen their identification with their own environment/hometown.
The playground is characterised above all by its size of approx. 1 ha and its connection to the Bambesch community forest, which creates interesting play areas between the designed play landscape and the natural, freely grown structures. This close proximity of the two areas can also be used to convey an important understanding of nature through play.
It was decided to use mainly wood and other natural building materials (stone, sand, wood chips, water, etc.) for the construction of the play equipment/structures in order to fulfil the requirements of the natural environment and to enhance the children's haptic play experience in addition to the design effect.
1.2 Climate change and sustainability
As part of a sustainable and climate-adapted design, excessive sealing was avoided when designing the areas in order to protect the existing soil and keep it open for centralised rainwater infiltration. The increasingly frequent and prolonged periods of heat caused by man-made climate change also play an important role in the design of the playground. In order to protect users from excessive sunlight on extremely hot summer days, new trees were planted in highly exposed areas. By placing play areas along the existing edge of the forest, the transpiration cooling effect of the existing trees is also utilised to a particular extent. Two open areas are protected by a sun sail and an all-weather sail. Various water features in the centre of the facility also provide opportunities to cool off. A child-friendly drinking water dispenser is available in the entrance area for thirsty visitors.
1.3 Integration and participation
Integration and participation were considered when designing the Bambesch playground, which is unfortunately often not the case in other playgrounds at present. As a place of encounter and interaction, the playground should offer something for people of all age groups, genders, backgrounds and physical and mental abilities. Instead of using apparently barrier-free materials and play elements, the design concept should lay a significant foundation for the inclusive and barrier-free design of the new playground. The different risk potentials in the design of the play facilities created offers for both young and old.
In order to promote mutual interaction and integration, specific play concepts were developed that work particularly well when several children work together to achieve a common goal.
Accessibility played a key role in integration and participation. For this reason, access routes and numerous entrances to play equipment were designed at ground level so that people with limited mobility can also use the facilities on their own. Thanks to a surface made of wheelchair-accessible wood chippings from the company Öcocolor, it was possible to provide barrier-free access to most parts of the playground and at the same time maintain the overall theme of the "nature playground"
2. The playground
2.1 Play area for small children
The entrance area of the playground is an expansive toddler area, which is bordered to the north by a section of the "city wall" modelled on natural stone blocks and to the south by the main path made of water-bound surfacing. The zig-zag "city wall", designed according to the Vanban model, not only provides barrier-free access to the play area, but also serves as a seating and play element. At various points, the approximately 60 cm high wall is connected to the neighbouring play area by different structures such as a net access and a wooden climbing platform. Additional wooden platforms in the shade of the neighbouring, lush oak trees provide sufficient shade for a rest on hot summer days.
In the sand play area, there are various climbing facilities such as a climbing course where the youngest children can develop/strengthen their motor skills and interact with each other. The refurbished animal carousel from the old site refers to the eventful history of the place. A newly installed nest cradle can be used for swinging - alone or with others - or just to chill out. Further play elements complete the play offer.
2.2 Water play area
If one crosses the wide main path, it leads to the extensive sand and mud area, which can be recognised from far away due to its large sun sails. Parts of the sail, which provides cool shade on hot days in the sun-exposed area, have been recycled and taken over from the old equipment. The sand play area itself is equipped with several small pieces of play equipment, such as a small digger and a caterpillar play equipment for small children.
In addition to the sail-covered sand play area, the area is mainly characterised by a village of gnomes with three smaller huts, which can be reached via a wooden walkway at ground level that connects directly to the main path. In the transition area between the gnome village and the sand and mud play area, there are various play features such as pumps, a mud chute and a sand lift, which encourage children to interact with each other.
In the centre of the play area, the Alzette play stream coming from Fortress Drei Eichelen ends in a spiral. The stream is made of colourful mosaic paving and is edged in places with boulders of different sizes, which direct the flowing water in different directions. Along the stream there are various play features such as draw/dam weirs, pumps, mill wheels, spray nozzles and small waterfalls. Due to the shape and sequence of the play equipment, the children have to interact with each other in order to, for example, dam up a large amount of water and then let it rush down the stream.
The legendary figure of the mermaid Melusina, with whom the knight Siegfried fell in love and built a castle on the Bockfelsen in her honour, stands at the headwaters of the stream.
The entire course of the stream is always accompanied on at least one side by a surface of wood chips from the company Öcocolor, which is also suitable for wheelchairs or pushchairs. The stream itself is also wheelchair-accessible in places so that as many people as possible can enjoy the play experience.
2.3 Fortress "Drai Eechelen"
At the highest, northernmost point of the Spielbach, the "Drai Eechelen" fortress forms the transition area to the woodland. The fortress is part of the historic fortifications of the city of Luxembourg and is named after the three oversized, gold-plated acorn images on the tops of the roofs.
The fortress can be played on different levels. The open design of the panelling creates exciting opportunities for interaction among the children inside and outside the play area, especially with the inclusion of the two spray pumps installed in front of the fortress gates.
In the centre of the fortress, in the shade of the surrounding trees, there is a water play area with a water dispenser. In the sheltered area, away from the main central area, younger children have the opportunity to gain experience with water in combination with mud and sand.
The fortress itself can be accessed by children of different ages via various entrances and exits, such as slides, bridges, wobbly walkways and tower climbs.
2.4 Spanish tower
Continuing southwards along the neighbouring edge of the forest, a footbridge leads to the continuation of the city wall, the first part of which begins in the entrance area.
Following the jagged course of the wall / battlements, visitors come to an exact reproduction of one of the Spanish towers that were built as part of the fortifications during the period of Spanish rule in Luxembourg. Children can use a slide to get from the higher city wall to the lower play area on the inside.
In addition to the sliding pole, there are other entrances and exits such as the aforementioned via ferrata and a climbing net.
2.5 Three towers
To the south-east, the three towers form the end of the main playground. In Luxembourg, they are among the oldest buildings in the city. From the edge of the forest, the three towers are accessible via a wooden bridge. The foundation of the three towers is an artificial rock grotto, which is equipped with a sound element and a pretzel ladder.
The tower has various levels that can be climbed via a maze-like sequence of wooden platforms of different heights.
Once at the top, the children have the opportunity to communicate with children in other play areas by one of three headsets.
2.6 Castle bridge
To the rear of the three towers is the Castle Bridge, a reproduction of the original Schlossbrücke, which connects the city's fish market with the Bockfelsen. The bridge can be divided into two levels. The lower part can be crossed underneath and also serves as a recreation area where children can rest while playing.
The upper section of the bridge is designed as a seesaw platform. Depending on how the weight is shifted by the people crossing, the bridge, which is also suitable for crossing in a wheelchair, tilts in one direction or the other.
2.7 Bockfelsen
The Bockfelsen is the cradle of Luxembourg and is the site of the old castle, which is today the city's nucleus. The rock itself is constructed in two different ways. On the one hand, it is made of rectangular blocks of natural stone and, on the other, of modelled artificial rock walls, which are modelled after the original in their colours and structure.
The steps of the Luxembourg sandstone block structures allow for a quick ascent, and their height also makes them suitable as seating elements. Equipped with a wheelchair-accessible surface made of interlocking wood chips, the higher plateau can also be reached by people with limited mobility.
In the area of the modelled artificial rock walls, three climbing ascents of varying degrees of difficulty, in the form of several boulder-like recesses in the wall, serve to overcome the difference in height.
2.8 Hohler Zahn (Hollow Tooth)
The Hohle Zahn (Hollow Tooth) rises up from the centre of the Bockfelsen, which resembles the former defence tower of the city's fortifications. The wooden play tower can be accessed via a suspension bridge. Inside, the tower can be climbed up a chimney and once at the top, exited via a slide. At the top of the tower, which is the highest point of the facility, the children have a comprehensive view of the entire playground and the neighbouring forest.
2.9 Picnic area
There is a picnic area on the large play area in the south-west of the facility, which is protected from the sun and rain by an all-weather sail. This is the perfect space for a "play break", a communal lunch or a place for parents to relax. The area is multifunctional and can be used as a venue for performances and concerts by removing the picnic benches.
To the north-west of the picnic area is a state-of-the-art, barrier-free stainless steel toilet facility. The facility is largely self-cleaning and is freely available to visitors.
