Splash Pad - Various Kinds of Spray To Appeal To All Ages

Various Kinds of Spray To Appeal To All Ages

Many splash pads have some features such as fine mist, that are designed to be moderate enough for children. Other splash fountains are designed for adults, e.g. for joggers or concert goers to cool off in. The splash fountain in Toronto's city centre, Dundas Square, features 600 spray nozzles that shoot water straight up through stainless steel grilles set right in the middle of the main walkway. The nozzles rise and fall in unison, like the waves on a beach, so that there are times when the water level is low enough for children to also play in the water. The heights of all the fountains rise and fall in unison, in a sinusoidally time varying manner, to create the atmosphere of an urban beach.

The Dundas Square fountains are maintained to a high quality of cleanliness ("pool water or better" standards, according to the maintainers of the facility) because, unlike most city center fountains, these were designed for waterplay. Special nonslip granite slabs were installed to ensure the safety of children and adults alike. Although there are changerooms at level P1 (the parking garage directly under Dundas Square), many people splash spontaneously, without having planned a trip in advance, therefore not having brought a bathing suit. People simply take off their shirts and shoes, roll up their pant legs, and run through. Thus, as is typical of urbeach changing facilities, only one sixth of the washroom space is devoted to use for changing, and the men's and women's washrooms/changerooms in total only comprise six parking spaces worth of space in P1. The architects even had to go to great lengths to justify the use of six revenue-generating parking spots for a facility that does not, in itself, generate revenue.