Nonprofit KABOOM! is building a playground – and they’re asking kids to design it

WASHINGTON - On Wednesday, 20 kids from Southeast D.C. designed their dream playground.

KABOOM!, a nonprofit focused on reducing playspace inequity, hosted a Design Day with children and parents to brainstorm plans for a community playground. Construction for the playground is set to begin this September. 

This will be the 11th KABOOM! playground in the D.C. metropolitan area since 2013 funded by the Monumental Sports & Entertainment Foundation. They're the charitable arm of the Washington Capitals, Washington Mystics and Washington Wizards.

"MSE Foundation is proud of our longtime partnership with KABOOM! ," said Elizabeth Pace, President and Executive Director of MSE, in an email to FOX 5 DC. "The Capitals, Mystics, Wizards and Capital City Go-Go are so grateful for the fans who are always there to cheer us on, and it’s important to us that we do our part to give back and support the community in turn."

During the brainstorm session, one child wrote they wanted a "big kid slide". Another drew a swing set. A parent wrote they wanted a zipline, a baby area and trash cans. 

After KABOOM! compiles all the ideas, they will incorporate them and the community will vote on the final playground design. 

The event took place at So Others Might Eat’s Independence Place location.

"We are hopeful that each playground we build brings us closer to… helping to address the physical, social and emotional needs of children today, " Pace said.