Sensory-friendly play equipment installed at Ellicott City’s Centennial Park

Unique play features, including a sway glider, we-go swing and merry-go-all, as well as a sensory-friendly rock abacus with special textures and shapes, and innovative musical stations were installed recently at Centennial Park North in Ellicott City, designed to allow anyone with physical challenges to play freely by themselves or with others.

Howard County Executive Calvin Ball and Recreation and Parks Director Nick Mooneyhan celebrated the opening of the park’s sensory trail loop and all-access playground area on Nov. 17.

“Parks are a place where our entire community is welcome. It is a place to meet neighbors, share experiences, and rejuvenate,” Ball said in a news release. “This new sensory trail helps us build upon our efforts to be more inclusive for our residents of all ages and abilities.”

Centennial Park was built in 1987, with a vision to create an environment where anyone could visit to boat, hike, play and come together as a community, according to the release. Visitors can bike, run or walk on a 2.6-mile paved pathway, boat or fish on a 54-acre man-made lake and play  basketball, baseball, softball, racquetball, tennis or volleyball in designated areas throughout the park.

In 2021, Ball opened the transformative inclusive playground, which was the first PlayCore National Demonstration Site inclusive playground in Howard County. This phase was designed after meeting with a stakeholder planning group that was comprised of disability advocates, parents of consumers, residents and Recreation and Park staff members.

“Every time we redo a playground in Howard County, we are installing more accessible play features and being intentional in our design to make sure our parks remain a welcoming place for all to visit,” Mooneyhan said in the release. “We’ve recently rebuilt playgrounds at Savage and Warfield’s Pond parks in order to make them more inclusive and we have more planned in the coming years.”

The new play features include a we-go swing that allows individuals to rock a “boat” back and forth using their arm and a merry-go-all, which is a fully accessible, forward-facing spinning ride for multiple passengers.

In addition to the playground enhancements, the project consisted of constructing a new stormwater management system to help with drainage, a new fence and two gated entrances to go around the path and playground.

Between 2017 and 2021, 5.4% of county residents under the age of 65 were living with a disability, according to the U.S. Census.

The county invested about $400,000 for the sensory area and path, bringing the total of both playground phases to an estimated $750,000, according to Ball.

Lisa Dornell, of Columbia, is one of the residents who served on the stakeholder planning group ahead of the opening of the sensory-friendly playground.

As the mother of a son with disabilities, she said it means a lot to her and her family for the county to invest in inclusive parks and playgrounds.

“It means that the county understands that our disabled family members and loved ones are integral parts of the community and they are deserving of the opportunity to be able to participate in recreation,” she said.

The sensory trail loop is near the all-access playground at Centennial Park North at 9801 Old Annapolis Road in Ellicott City.