Playful City USA

With nearly one million youth within the “Valley of the Sun”, Shawna Bradlich, Executive Director of the Maricopa Council on Youth Sports and Physical Activity (MCYSPA), stepped forward as one of the first Playmakers guiding local communities in this national endeavor. MCYSPA is working hard to bridge the community, leverage available resources, shape public policy, and work effectively to improve urban design, particularly with commitment to the needs of underserved communities.

“Among the issues of today’s youth are lack of proper playspaces and health disparities caused by inactivity and poor nutrition…some youth turn to health harming or premature adult behaviors…as a result, many children are missing out on their childhood,” said Bradlich.

MCYSPA introduced an outstanding KaBOOM! opportunity to the Phoenix-area called Playful City USA. Five core commitments are the basic components for establishing an agenda on play that ripples through city hall, schools and neighborhoods. These commitments can be interpreted in a variety of ways based on the status of play, the political climate and the existing infrastructure within a local community. However, to achieve the status of being a Playful City USA all commitments must be met via public-private partnerships to ensure that an agenda on play exists as a long-term matter of political importance in a given community.

A Playful City USA community will be given priority consideration for all KaBOOM! resources including Challenge grants and Corporate/Community builds such as those Home Depot and other great corporate partners support. In addition, KaBOOM! is developing national partnerships interested in supporting Playful City USA communities. Finally, when applying independently for grants and funding, this national recognition demonstrates a family-friendly, livable community that is committed to children.

"Across the nation, playgrounds, parks, sport facilities, trails, and open spaces are in decline. This adds to the challenge of promoting healthy lifestyles for citizens of all ages. However, the City of Phoenix has done a remarkable job of prioritizing parks, preserves and playspaces. MCYSPA wanted to showcase the work of the Phoenix Parks and Recreation Department and use it as a model for other cities, this was a primary reason we chose to first partner with the City of Phoenix in the Playful City USA initiative,” said Bradlich.