6105 Weißenburg Playground Stuttgart

Location:
Stuttgart, Germany

Project phases:
Planning 2022 – 2023; Realization 2023 –2024

Client:
City of Stuttgart, Department of Parks, Cemeteries, and Forestry

Landscape architecture:
Studio Vulkan

Photography:
Daniela Valentini

Details:

• [leisure time]
• [park]
• [playground]
• [redesign]

Terraces of Play

The playground in Weißenburgpark, a large park laid out for the Federal Garden Show in 1961 in the southeast of Stuttgart, extends from a surrounding terrace into the steep topography of the Stuttgart basin and opens up wide views over the state capital.

When it was opened for the Garden Show, the play area was enclosed by sandstone walls and spatially framed by a water play area – soon decommissioned – and a now-derelict public restroom. Differences in elevation within the open space were terraced with stairways and higher walls. As a result, inclusive and barrier-free access to the playground was difficult.

In 2023, the aging open space was transformed into a modern, inclusive playground and, with careful regard for the site’s history, integrated into the existing park. A dense frame of mature trees embeds the playground in the established landscape. With only minor pruning, the tree canopies still allow for impressive views over Stuttgart’s basin from the playground and the surrounding seating areas.

Many of the existing materials were salvaged during construction and reused in the redesign, such as the paving surfaces and the surrounding sandstone wall. The concept also takes up the character of Weißenburgpark in its choice of materials and plantings.

On the lower level, a sand play area and a picnic area were created, linked seamlessly by a gently sloping path. Different paving formats form a floor surface laid in a passé pattern. At the edges, natural stone paving flows into the play areas, ensuring the transition into the sand. Large sandstone blocks were reused as seating elements and to structure the levels of the sand play area.

Shaded by trees and designed with a water-permeable, breathable gravel surface, the picnic area offers parents and children a comfortable place to stay. Bench-table combinations and individual benches are distributed across the site.

The playground makes use of the site’s distinctive topography by leading a long slide down the slope from the upper to the lower play level. A new water play facility, a climbing and balancing course, as well as open spaces beneath the trees invite children of different age groups to play.