play:groundNYC — Attraction in New York

This is an interesting concept, but the people who work here are militant and won’t respect differing views. My kid turned five last month and we headed over to try out the playground. Our son is very confident and not risk adverse. We decided that the area designated for older kids was not right for him yet; kids were chucking sheet metal and hammers off the side of a one and a half story scaffold with only a thin rope or metal bar running around the sides. We also have a 5 month old. We were chatting with friends and tending to the baby when our son crossed over to the older kids’ section. We saw him go and tried to go after him to bring him back to the younger kids’ area. He immediately headed for the scaffold, grabbed a hammer and headed to the top. We were not comfortable with this and politely asked staff if we could retrieve our child. The staff said no, we weren't allowed. I then politely asked if a staff member could get our child for us. The staffer said no, she wasn’t comfortable infringing on our child’s freedom in this way. I told her I was concerned for his safety and she told me that was my issue, not my son’s and I shouldn’t punish my son for my hang-ups. By this time, he was leaning head first over the scaffolding and I was worried. I again asked if someone could let him know that I wanted him to come out of the play area and again, I was told no, that the staffer would not “do that” to my child. At this point, my husband walked past the staffer and over to our son, asked him to get down and walked him out of the play yard. The staffer followed us out of the playground basically telling us that we were disrespectful, that we made her feel that she was doing a bad job and that we are, essentially, bad parents. We apologized, said she was doing a fine job, but that this just wasn’t for us. She kept at it telling us our son was perfectly safe and that my husband and I were the problem. We essentially agreed with her, again apologized, and tried to leave, but she would not let it go. At this point it got comical. Bottom line: it’s not for everybody, and if you don’t think it is for you, don’t try it. They literally refused to give me access to my 5 year old! Ironically, you have to sign a waiver (even though it is perfectly safe and we are apparently paranoid nutjobs). Also, we were bad parents because we weren’t watching our son closely enough to keep him from running to the dangerous area…except the whole point is to encourage kids to be independent and free from the watchful eye of the helicopter parent. Head over to the awesome slides and ropes playground instead. It is still an adventure and you won’t feel judged and shamed...and your kid won't leave Governor's Island with...

It’s cool. Kids love it. It’s not for everyone, especially parents who hover (you know who you are). If the idea of signing a liability waiver then letting your kid out of your sight to go play in a junkyard full of potential injury hazards like building materials, tools, a garden hose with running water, scaffolding and various ramshackle structures bothers you, you might want to skip it. There are many other things to do on the island. But if you trust your kid and want to give her the opportunity to have a wildly imaginative play experience beyond the sanitized, helmeted, seatbelt-wearing confines of kids’ normal life in this day and age, you should go for it! To a 5 or 6 year old, this place is a mysterious wonderland unlike anything they can experience growing up in New York City. For our daughter it represents tremendous freedom and independence, and it’s just so incredibly packed with interesting stuff and different things to do. Yes it’s somewhat unnerving to lose your kid in a big junk yard full of weird looking things and other kids you don’t know. But there’s only one exit, and they all pop back out eventually! The fact that a place like this is willing to exist today is nothing short of a miracle for kids. It’s absolutely worth a little risk to have this...

The place is truly unique. The kids get to explore their surroundings and use materials with tools under staff supervision to make something. It's best for sloghtly kids who have a good understanding of safety and self awareness. My 5 year old was knocked over by a kid on a swing and has nasty scrapes on his stomach and legs. It was partially his fault and partially the other kids fault so he learnt his lesson and was just cautiously walking around studying everything. He got on / in every contraption at the playground but is too young to build. As for dangerous things laying around, I was growing up with far worse "supplies". Again it takes kids to learn about safety. Bring some close toed sturdy shoes that you don't mind being ruined, a change of clothes. They have a bucket of water to flush a child after playing. You won't be able to go in with the child but you can watch through the fence if you so inclined to do. Most parents relax on the lawn by the playground. A small area for young explorers is on the side where parents have access. You have to fill vaiwers for all kids attending. The reception is somehow very poor there, so maybe you can do it prior to going there online, but...