This designer playground in lower Manhattan has plenty of unique sculptural elements, but like many prestige projects, not entirely functional. 

The slides were great, very slippery and a good way to burn off some of that excess energy. The stone did get warm to the touch in the sun, but so do other materials. There could have been more shade on this section of the playground, but thats true of most places. 

The main attraction was the double climbing tower with a suspension bridge. This had some fancy looking cubes and rope bridges for climbing and all the kids were into it. However, the one side had platforms for climbing to the top, each one alternating orientation. Great for three-year-olds, not so great for adults trying to get a three-year-old out. He eventually got out on his own. 

There was a cute little theater where no doubt the designer imagined many children's productions plays just like Jo March in Little Women. This amphitheater is called the ShowBox, and includes a puppet nook. There were no puppets to play with and nobody was really using it. The whole thing is a classic example of over thinking a playground for children into the fantasy of a how we want children to play, like looking at the neatly organized bedrooms in a Pottery Barn catalog. 

There was a climbing wall too but it was in direct sun without shade, meaning nobody was climbing. 

The "Meadow" includes some balancing stones, a path way between two sections of the park. It was largely overgrown with bushes and shrubs, but a few brave families attempted to make the journey. They disappeared into the brush and I never saw them again. 

The playground is just a few yards from a beer garden, although it's not close enough to watch small children while drinking. The beer garden does maintain bathrooms though, so take advantage of that. 

The playground has a kind serpentine series of pathways, but no real route to follow, just segregated little compartments for playing. It's easy to miss some sections, and we almost didn't hit up the slides, except of course, I'm nosy. 

It's worth noting that the water in the "river bed" section o the park was not on and it was turned off. 

Maintenance on this park space wasn't very good and everything seemed a bit janky and falling apart. 

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The playscape was built after Hurricane Sandy decimated lower Manhattan and cost an incredible $18m. The playground officially opened in 2021.