1 / 3Aidan's Place at Westwood Recreation Center
📍 Westwood, CA
Fully accessible playground at Westwood Recreation Center with swings, slides, climbing structures, sensory-friendly elements, and a cable-pulley zip-line swing. Free entry with on-site parking and pram access throughout.
Aidan James Gaffney was born on December 5, 1995. He was a bright eyed, courageous, sensitive and beautiful boy that was born with a progressive disease that left him ventilator dependant and wheelchair bound. In a wheelchair for five and one half years, Aidan taught us what it was like to be physically disabled in this world. One of his favorite activities was watching his siblings play at local playgrounds on the West Side of Los Angeles. Denied the opportunity to play himself because of poor accessibility, Aidan inspired us to build this playground so children of all abilities could play in their neighborhood parks. It is our hope that with increasing awareness of this need and adequate public funding, all future public playgrounds built throughout America will be designed to serve the needs of every child in the community. Aidan died on June 26, 2001 and never lived to see the opening of this great playground.
🏆 Family Action Verdict
Best for families with children who need wheelchair accessibility or sensory-friendly play equipment — this playground genuinely delivers on its inclusive mission. The diverse structures keep kids of all abilities engaged. Families with very mobile toddlers will find the open layout easy to navigate.
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💬 What Families Are Saying
View all reviews →378 Google reviews
Craig Baker
a year ago
“Aidan James Gaffney was born on December 5, 1995. He was a bright eyed, courageous, sensitive and beautiful boy that was born with a progressive disease that left him ventilator dependant and wheelchair bound. In a wheelchair for five and one half years, Aidan taught us what it was like to be physically disabled in this world. One of his favorite activities was watching his siblings play at local playgrounds on the West Side of Los Angeles. Denied the opportunity to play himself because of poor accessibility, Aidan inspired us to build this playground so children of all abilities could play in their neighborhood parks. It is our hope that with increasing awareness of this need and adequate public funding, all future public playgrounds built throughout America will be designed to serve the needs of every child in the community. Aidan died on June 26, 2001 and never lived to see the opening of this great playground.”
Natalya B
a year ago
“So many play structures. Many options for swings, slides, climbing, pretend play, etc. A kid's version of a zip line for lack of a better word (swing that an adult pushes that's on a cable/pulley-not sure of the words, they're pushed and then come back). Free parking available. Closer parking has some time caveats during weekdays. Bathroom is inside the rec center.”
Nerissa Rivera
4 weeks ago
“Never been to a playground that truly lived up to its vision of being inclusive to all! And so wheelchair accessible and multiple sensory inputs for a playground HIGHLY recommend”
Jhonathan Uzcategui
3 months ago
“The best park in LA fun open space no gates but nice vey nice Really sad the homeless are taking over 😞”
Reviews from Google
Overview
Aidan's Place is a universally accessible playground built as a memorial to Aidan James Gaffney, designed to ensure children of all abilities can play together. Equipment includes traditional swings, slides, climbing structures, pretend play areas, sensory-friendly elements, and a cable-pulley zip-line swing requiring adult assistance. The open-design space has no perimeter gates. Restrooms are inside the adjacent recreation center. Parking nearby has weekday time restrictions on closer spots.
