If you’re in Southeast Florida looking to enjoy a day near or on the water, Sandsprit Park in Stuart, FL is the place! Situated right on the Eastern Coast, this park features a number of amenities for children and pavilions that are available for rent for parties and events. The 3,100 sq. ft. outdoor playground previously featured sand beneath the climbing and play structures. When deciding on what safety surfacing is right for your playground, a few key questions should come to mind:

1) What is the total cost of ownership?

2) What long-term maintenance resources are required?

3) Will it meet accessibility requirements?

4) Will it meet ASTM Fall Protection Requirements? If so, for how long?

5) Will I need to regularly replenish or add to my surface? If so, how often?

6) Will it beautify our park and is it aesthetically pleasing to look at?

For Sandsprit, given the high volume of foot traffic this park sees daily, addressing accessibility concerns for park goers was a must. Ensuring the new surface would satisfy the requirements of ASTM F1951 (Determination of Accessibility of Surface Systems Under and Around Playground Equipment) was also a must.

Battling strong coastal winds was an ongoing challenge at this location with sand being regularly displaced from within the park play areas. In order to ensure compliance, it would continue to require frequent and costly visits from maintenance technicians to ensure that sand is regularly replenished, compacted sand is loosened, raked and leveled in order to provide sufficient and even coverage for kids at play – especially in the high use areas such as beneath swings and at the bottoms of slides.

After careful consideration of the long-term cost comparison of ownership (over a 15 year life expectancy) between a loose fill system and a unitary surface, it became evident that a unitary surface was the only option for this application. duraSAFE® Rubber Playground Tiles offer a Lifetime Warranty on the product and the safety performance! Further, it satisfies all requirements for accessibility and durability.