I recently listened to a podcast that got me thinking about where children play.  In the podcast, James Howard Kunstler discusses the effects of suburban sprawl on childhood obesity.   If you think about the typical suburban community, like the one I grew up in in Maryland, the play areas for children are often created exclusively for playing.   I clearly remember the “playground” inside a local mall.  I’m sure many of you have play structures in your neighborhoods.

Oftentimes, parents take their children to these spaces because they are percieved as safe and comfortable.  They are specifically for children and allow kids to do something in a kid-safe environment.  This is also a reason why many families move out to the suburbs once they have kids.  Since downtowns don’t have play structures, they aren’t really supposed to be for kids, right?

But here’s the challenge and how I link it back to childhood obesity.  In addition to play structures in many neighborhoods in Ann Arbor, there have also been the creation of other place spaces that can pretty much only be gotten to by driving.   Think about Jungle Java for example, where kids can play while their parents sip coffee.  I know of two of these play spaces.  One is on Jackson after Wagner and the other is on Washtenaw.  Both locations are not very friendly to walking or biking.  So rather than kids being able to just walk to a place to play, they have to be driven to that place.  This is kind of how people who want to work out will drive 10 miles to go to the gym.

Here again is an interesting example of segregating uses for development.  Instead of everything being mixed into one community, so you can play, eat, shop, work, work-out, etc. in one place, all of those uses are spread apart so that you are encouraged to drive from one destination to the other.  And this could defintely make it harder to get the kinds of exercise that can keep all of us fit.  I’m talking about the little bits of exercise you get when you live in a walkable place where walking/biking is just a way to get around.

But here’s the challenge, suppose we want to encourage kids to be able to walk to places where they can place.  Since downtown Ann Arbor seems to be very walkable . . . how do we design places like downtown Ann Arbor in a way that is both friendly for kids and adults?  Do we actually need to do anything different?  Can kids “play” just fine without a specific place for them to do so?   Or do parents feel like downtown Ann Arbor would be a bad place to raise a child because of the lack of schools and other things kids need?

I guess the reason I am bringing all of this up is that I often hear that downtowns (including downtown Ann Arbor) are not good for families because they lack the type of spaces that families need.  But then many of these families move out to the suburbs and are forced to drive everywhere including to drop kids off at daycare, to go on play dates, etc.  Not only does this cut down on exercise, but it also takes time . . . time that could be spent in a community.

The more I look at these different issues, the more I see how important it is to create walkable spaces with a variety of uses that allow everyone–from a small child, to a teenager, to an adult, to a senior–to get around without having to drive.  It just seems to make sense.  But development still hasn’t caught up.  I wonder if other people feel the same way.

In honor of I Like Bikes Week, some of the Staff at Ann Arbor Cyclery are putting together a bike scavenger hunt on May 10 at 4pm.  Here are the details:

Bike Scavenger Hunt (Sunday, May 10, 4pm, Northwest Corner of Diag at State and N. University)

Join us for this family-friendly, fun-filled event! Participants will have to visit “commuting themed” checkpoints like bike lockers and bike racks. By visiting each check point and completing the course, you will receive a raffle ticket towards prizes. All ages and skill levels can participate and families can participate as a team.

This post is from Eric, one of our Commuter Challenge Ambassadors.  Eric works at Internet2 and normally bikes and telecommutes to work.

I started biking to work last summer, riding every day I was in town into December. I have about a 3 mile commute through town and really enjoy being out and about and seeing the sights.

One of the big challenges for me is how to handle drop-offs and pick-ups of two small children at two different schools on my way to work. If the kids were really little, I could have gotten a trailer bike for the two of them, but I started bike commuting after they had just exceeded the weight limit (100 pounds combined). Last year we all walked the bike to one school, then walked the bike to another school, and then I rode to work.

This year, I’ve replaced my backpack with panniers, to make it easier to ride in work clothes, and bought a Giant Half-wheeler from Great Lakes Cycle and Fitness. Now I walk both children to the first school, ride with the second child to the second school, and then continue on my way to work. Although I’ve gotten a few startled “did you lose something important” looks, riding with an empty half-wheeler for the last third of my commute has been pretty easy and makes my ride a little more of workout.

The larger question of how a parent with young children can become a successful bike commuter is still a challenging one. I’ve benefited from close proximity to schools which not everyone enjoys. The half-wheeler is a good solution, particularly if there’s only one child and they are big enough to ride safely with a parent. I think the ideal solution might be a bakfiets . The closest dealer I’m aware of is in Chicago: www.dutchbikechicago.com. I rode one once and it was a great ride, but they are expensive, and so far I haven’t made the leap.