New Orleans, Louisiana 

The site of the Oliver Bush Playground was a once-bustling 30-year-old park in the devastated Lower Ninth Ward that had been used as a staging area for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers equipment and materials in the aftermath of the floods.  VergesRome Architects provided design services that helped bring a much-needed playground and gathering space to Lower Ninth Ward residents. 

Site improvements included complete re-grading of the softball field, all new sidewalks and fencing, new lighting for the softball field, four tennis courts, and redesigned landscaping. All new sidewalks at the site are wheelchair accessible. 

All electrical service and site lighting were upgraded. Tennis courts were stripped to the subsurface and given new asphalt play surfaces. A freestanding restroom building was demolished and rebuilt to ADA guidelines, with all mechanical and electrical equipment relocated to a new second floor to mitigate future flood damage and loss. 

The basketball pavilion was demolished along with its slab and replaced by a spacious open shelter over two regulation-size basketball courts. A third, uncovered court was re-striped. New playground equipment was installed atop a rubber play surface, with new walkways and benches, and a new 900 SF open picnic pavilion was designed for the facility.