The Playground: The playground area at Barrett is a winner for little and medium-sized kids alike, and became a particular favorite for me and my best friend when we had both 1-year-old newly-walking daredevils and 5-year-old playground experts. The little (2 - 5 year-old) and big (5 - 12 year-old) structures are located close together, such that a parent can easily supervise kids on both
The little kids’ structure is compact, but plenty of fun for a toddler. It features a tiny climbing wall, a double slide, and a few fun play features. It's about waist-high at its highest, perfect for an older toddler or preschooler.
The big kid structure is cool, with one super fun feature loved by kids and parents alike (seriously -- adults can't help but try it too!): a two part "spinny thing", for lack of a better term. While younger kids won't be able to reach the upper portion of the spinny thing, they love trying to sit or stand on the bottom platform and balance while it spins. Older kids and adults will have a blast trying to manipulate it. It isn't a great playground feature for kids who get upset about a tumble -- it's tough not to fall -- but for those who don't mind rolling onto the squishy ground surface, it's lots of fun.
The big kid structure also has several high slides, including one side-by-side-by-side, where three kids can race down together -- pretty rare among local play structures, so a fun thing to experience. There’s also a stand-alone climbing wall.
Finally, the playground features two swings -- one big kid, one little kid -- set slightly apart from the play structures, so not a big risk of kids running in front (thoughtful planning). As is almost always the case, it would be nice if there were more swings, but given the general lack of crowds, two is usually sufficient.
Ground surface is pressed rubber and tanbark.
The Rest of the Park: The park as a whole is nice and well-maintained. Its great features include:
Bathrooms! Clean ones! Immediately next to the play structures! Hooray!
A nice lawn area -- big enough for games of tag or soccer, though you probably want to avoid kite-flying, as there are power lines nearby.
The Rest of the Park: The park as a whole is nice and well-maintained. Its great features include:
Bathrooms! Clean ones! Immediately next to the play structures! Hooray!
A nice lawn area -- big enough for games of tag or soccer, though you probably want to avoid kite-flying, as there are power lines nearby.
Several concrete picnic tables, including a few with checkerboard tops. Two are located right alongside the playground area -- a few more are situated a short distance away, among some trees.
The park is not completely fenced, but the two openings -- one into the development, one to the street on the outside -- are both set at one end of the park and are easy for parents to monitor. There's enough fun to be had on the playground and lawn area that kids probably won't want to wander off.
There is minimal shade on the playground, but several trees with shaded seating underneath.
Finally, I have yet to visit this park at a crowded time. The maximum number of other families I've seen there at a single time is three -- several times we've been there for 45 minutes and only seen one other group.
Overall this is a really pleasant park that is worth a visit if you live or shop in the vicinity. Enjoy!
(Review drafted in 2017. We’ve visited probably a dozen times since. Last visit was January 2023.)