Accessible playgrounds in Boise
Start with Cassia Park, the largest at 15,740 sq ft on bonded rubber.
Then Terry Day Park, Camel's Back Park, Castle Hills Park, Franklin Park. All 22 are ranked below with the surface under each one, and the four surfaces are explained further down, because that is the half most lists leave out.
Where to start
The largest on record
Newest builds
With a restroom
Playgrounds with named inclusive equipment
An ADA rating means a kid can get to the equipment. These 5 go further, with specific pieces built so a child who uses a wheelchair can play on them, not just reach them. The city names each one in its own park description.
Cassia Park
A wheelchair-accessible We-Go-Round spinner, so a kid who stays in their chair can ride with everyone else.
Bowden Park
An inclusive Avalanche slide and a Ten Spin spinner, next to South Junior High.
Phillippi Park
Built to a universally accessible design, with a Ten Spin spinner.
Pine Grove Park
An inclusive swing seat, the piece most often missing from a rebuilt playground.
Primrose Park
Accessible play features and van-accessible ADA parking, rare enough here to be worth the drive.
Two that are close, and why they are not on the list
Owyhee Park has ADA-rated equipment on 1 of its 2 structures, but the surfacing is engineered wood fiber. The equipment is rated; getting to it is the harder part.
Comba Park is the opposite case: synthetic turf surfacing that rolls well, but the city does not list any structure here as ADA-rated. Worth a look if the surface is your main concern.
All 22 fully accessible playgrounds
Every Boise park where all playground equipment is ADA-rated and the surface is firm throughout, ranked by Parent Score.
| # | Park | Surface | Area | Shade | Restrooms | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Terry Day Park | Bonded rubber | Central Bench | Leafy | Year-round | 9.3 |
| 2 | Camel's Back Park | Bonded rubber | North River | Leafy | Year-round | 9 |
| 3 | Cassia Park | Bonded rubber | Central Bench | Leafy | Seasonal + portable | 9 |
| 4 | Castle Hills Park | Synthetic turf | North River | Leafy | Seasonal + portable | 9 |
| 5 | Franklin Park | Bonded rubber | Central Bench | Some shade | Year-round | 8.8 |
| 6 | Phillippi Park | Bonded rubber | Central Bench | Leafy | Seasonal only | 8.8 |
| 7 | Peppermint Park | Rubber tile | West Bench | Leafy | Seasonal + portable | 8.5 |
| 8 | Ann Morrison Park | Bonded rubber | North River | Some shade | Year-round | 8.3 |
| 9 | Hobble Creek Park | Bonded rubber | West Bench | Some shade | Year-round | 8.3 |
| 10 | Molenaar Park | Bonded rubber | West Bench | Some shade | Seasonal + portable | 8.3 |
| 11 | Esther Simplot Park | Bonded rubber | North River | Some shade | Year-round | 8 |
| 12 | Bowden Park | Bonded rubber | Central Bench | Leafy | Seasonal only | 7.8 |
| 13 | Cottonwood Park | Bonded rubber | West Bench | Some shade | Year-round | 7.5 |
| 14 | Fairview Park | Bonded rubber | North River | Leafy | Seasonal only | 7.5 |
| 15 | Morris Hill Park | Bonded rubber | Central Bench | Leafy | Year-round | 7.5 |
| 16 | Primrose Park | Bonded rubber | North River | Some shade | Seasonal + portable | 7 |
| 17 | Hewett Park | Bonded rubber | West Bench | Some shade | None | 6.3 |
| 18 | Bowler Park | Bonded rubber | Southeast | Full sun | Year-round | 6 |
| 19 | Pine Grove Park | Bonded rubber | West Bench | Some shade | Seasonal only | 6 |
| 20 | Simplot Sports Complex | Bonded rubber | Southeast | Full sun | Seasonal only | 6 |
| 21 | Boise Hills Park | Rubber tile | North River | Some shade | None | 4.5 |
| 22 | Stewart Gulch Park | Rubber tile | North River | Full sun | Seasonal + portable | 4.3 |
What the four surfaces mean
The surface decides whether a wheelchair, a walker or a stroller can get to the equipment at all. Boise playgrounds use four, and the city records which one is under each structure.
- Bonded rubber
- A poured, rubber-crumb mat. The easiest of the four to roll a wheelchair or a stroller across, and the surface most of the newer Boise playgrounds use.
- Rubber tile
- Interlocking rubber tiles. Rolls much like bonded rubber, with seams between the tiles.
- Synthetic turf
- Artificial grass over a padded base. Firm and even, and it does not scatter the way a loose surface does.
- Engineered wood fiber
- Milled wood fibers that knit together underfoot, listed by the city as Wood Carpet. It meets accessibility standards when it is freshly groomed and topped up, but it loosens with use and after rain, so it is the one surface where the day matters.
The other 33 playgrounds
Not listed as accessible, shown so you can look up any park. Most sit on engineered wood fiber, which is passable when freshly groomed and hard going when it is not.
| Park | Surface | Area | Restrooms | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kristin Armstrong Municipal Park | Engineered wood fiber | North River | Year-round | 8.8 |
| Ivywild Park | Engineered wood fiber | Southeast | Seasonal + portable | 8.5 |
| Julia Davis Park | Engineered wood fiber | North River | Year-round | 8.5 |
| Baggley Park | Engineered wood fiber | Southeast | Seasonal + portable | 8.3 |
| Catalpa Park | Engineered wood fiber | North River | Seasonal + portable | 8 |
| Eagle Rock Park | Engineered wood fiber | North River | Seasonal + portable | 8 |
| Manitou Park | Engineered wood fiber | Southeast | Seasonal + portable | 8 |
| Shoshone Park | Engineered wood fiber | Central Bench | Seasonal + portable | 8 |
| Sunset Park | Engineered wood fiber | North River | Seasonal + portable | 8 |
| Veterans Memorial Park | Engineered wood fiber | North River | Year-round | 8 |
| Williams Park | Engineered wood fiber | Southeast | Seasonal + portable | 8 |
| Winstead Park | Engineered wood fiber | West Bench | Seasonal + portable | 8 |
| Cypress Park | Engineered wood fiber | Southeast | Seasonal only | 7.8 |
| Elm Grove Park | Engineered wood fiber | North River | Seasonal + portable | 7.8 |
| Willow Lane Park | Engineered wood fiber | North River | Seasonal + portable | 7.8 |
| Florence Park | Engineered wood fiber | West Bench | Seasonal + portable | 7.5 |
| Jullion Park | Engineered wood fiber | West Bench | Seasonal only | 7.5 |
| Sycamore Park | Engineered wood fiber | West Bench | Seasonal + portable | 7.5 |
| Charles F. McDevitt Youth Sports Complex | Engineered wood fiber | West Bench | Seasonal + portable | 7.3 |
| Memorial Park | Engineered wood fiber | North River | Seasonal only | 7.3 |
| Redwood Park | Engineered wood fiber | West Bench | Year-round | 7.3 |
| Borah Park | Engineered wood fiber | Central Bench | Seasonal + portable | 7 |
| Fairmont Park | Engineered wood fiber | West Bench | Seasonal + portable | 7 |
| Skyline Park | Engineered wood fiber | West Bench | None | 7 |
| Helen B. Lowder Park | Engineered wood fiber | Southeast | Seasonal + portable | 6.8 |
| Liberty Park | Engineered wood fiber | Central Bench | Seasonal + portable | 6.8 |
| DeMeyer Park | Engineered wood fiber | West Bench | Seasonal + portable | 6.5 |
| Willow Lane Athletic Complex | Engineered wood fiber | North River | Seasonal only | 6 |
| Mountain View Park | Engineered wood fiber | West Bench | Seasonal only | 5.8 |
| Nottingham Park | Engineered wood fiber | West Bench | None | 5.3 |
| Gordon S. Bowen Park | Engineered wood fiber | North River | None | 5 |
| Kroeger Park | Engineered wood fiber | Southeast | None | 5 |
| Pioneer Tot Lot | Engineered wood fiber | North River | None |
Help us map the accessible parking
The city publishes what is under the equipment but not what is in the parking lot, and a van-accessible space with an access aisle decides the trip before you ever reach the playground. We have that confirmed for exactly one park, Primrose Park. If you know a Boise park with van-accessible ADA parking, tell us and we will add it.
Accessible playgrounds elsewhere in the valley
Meridian, Nampa and Caldwell each list accessible playgrounds of their own. None of the three publishes surface or per-structure detail the way Boise does, so these are the cities' own descriptions rather than a like-for-like comparison.
Settlers Park
The city lists a ramped main structure, a parent-and-baby swing and a sound garden.
Hillsdale Park
The city lists the tractor-themed playground as wheelchair accessible.
Midway Park
The city describes it as a universally accessible playground.
Mallard Park
The city lists an accessible playground at its newest park, above Lake Lowell.
Common questions
Which Boise playgrounds are wheelchair accessible?
22 Boise parks have playgrounds where every structure is ADA-rated and the surfacing is firm enough for a wheelchair: Terry Day Park, Camel's Back Park, Cassia Park, Castle Hills Park, Franklin Park, Phillippi Park and 16 others. Cassia Park is the largest at 15,740 sq ft. The full ranked list is above.
What playground surface works best for a wheelchair?
Bonded rubber is the easiest to roll across, and 18 Boise playgrounds use it. Rubber tile and synthetic turf work similarly well. Engineered wood fiber, which the city lists as Wood Carpet, meets accessibility standards when freshly groomed but loosens with use and rain, so it is the one surface where conditions on the day matter.
Are any Boise playgrounds inclusive, not just ADA-compliant?
Cassia Park, Bowden Park, Phillippi Park, Pine Grove Park, Primrose Park have specific inclusive equipment named in the city's own park descriptions, such as a wheelchair-accessible We-Go-Round spinner at Cassia Park and an inclusive swing seat at Pine Grove Park. An ADA rating means a child can reach the equipment; these go further and let them play on it.
Do Boise parks have accessible parking near the playground?
The city publishes playground surfacing and equipment ratings but not parking detail, so we can only confirm van-accessible ADA parking where a park page states it, currently Primrose Park. If you know of another, the suggestion form is linked above.
Which accessible playgrounds have a restroom?
20 of the 22, including Terry Day Park, Camel's Back Park, Cassia Park, Castle Hills Park, Franklin Park. The restrooms guide lists which stay open through the winter.