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Two in Tow & On the Go | Tacoma reaches new heights with tower slide at Foss Waterway

I don’t know if it was the magnetic pull of seeing a 36-foot-tall climbing tower or the sure-fire promise of thrills zipping down its double-digit tube slide — but Metro Parks Tacoma’s brand-new playground unveiled earlier this month definitely convinced us to make a trip over the bridge to see what’s up.

And it’s way up. Possibly, dare I say, up enough to give my two crazy kids some … pause? Well, if only for a few minutes. The thing about Clara and Wyatt is, they love new playgrounds. Drawing from their seemingly infinite bounds of big-kid energy within, these two sprightly siblings are ready to tackle any and every slide or space-ship-looking bar dome thing if it means fun is about to be had.

Well, usually. Because this tower, this *Melanie Jan LaPlant Dressel Park tower with its interconnected rope-and-platform system going up, up, up … is no joke. It’s SO tall! There’s even a bridge leading directly into the middle of it, so folks have the option of sneaking in halfway instead of feeling like they’ve been climbing forever. I think the bridge is also there for some added accessibility coolness, too. Bonus! https://www.metroparkstacoma.org/project/melanies-park/

The climb

Not that I know first hand what climbing up it is like — because that thing was full of little kids having the time of their lives going up the tower, and down the slide, and then back up the tower, and back down the slide again and again for all eternity. Or, at least until dinner time. Clara and Wyatt eventually did find their groove in the crowd of climbers, though. So, just to say, even for the most adventurous kids, it appears that tackling this tower requires a little warm-up time to feel it out first.

In fact, it was pretty wild for me not being able to climb up with them this time. I normally do all the things with the kids when we go places – to experience what it’s like and to take pics and stuff for coverage. But this time, I physically couldn’t fit in this jam-packed tower of joy for fear of knocking down some little kids like bowling pins after accidentally bumping them with my backpack or something (an action typically frowned upon by fellow parents), so Miss 10-year-old Clara herself took all the tower pics on this adventure! From inside of it, even! (TIP: She says there are three little hammock platforms for lounging on the interior of the tippy top)

Sure, she’s snapped a pic here and there on previous blogging adventures, but never a full-coverage photoshoot of a major feature that didn’t result in just wavy wisps of blurred lines on the iPhone screen. I did, however have to hand over my phone to her. Which is always a scary endeavor. But she took it very carefully, and made the climb without breaking said life-giving device. And then she got so much good stuff! Perspective shots of the tower’s height between the slats? Check! Feet framed and in focus on a downward angle for scale? Check! Action shots of her brother disappearing down the … uh, alarmingly dark entrance to the slide? Triple check! Or, is that last check an … “eeeeek!?” Check out her gallery, complete with a token adorable selfie. So proud of my future little blogger. (And Mr. Slide-Man Wyatt too, of course).

Seriously, though. That black hole entrance to the slide?

Wyatt just, like — POOF! — disappeared. Lol.

Historical marker on site tells the area’s story

Reclamation

Located at 1147 Dock St. along the city’s Foss Waterway industrial/maritime zone, this park with the very cool *name was once the site of a steam plant, complete with two big ‘ol (tower-slide-reminiscent) smoke stacks reaching for the sky. That was prior to the reclamation of the Foss Waterway, as part of Tacoma’s Superfund remediation project that began in the 1980s. That whole backstory is detailed in one of several historical and informational markers installed throughout the park grounds, with this smokestack one overlooking the water, along the walkway.

Namesake

So, it’s fitting that the park site was named after – and chosen to honor – a longtime community leader in Tacoma’s business sector. She died at home suddenly in 2017 when she was only 64. As I understand it, Melanie Dressel was someone who enjoyed making things better by making a point to get involved. By helping out. By being present — with her kids, with her career, and with the many volunteer positions she held locally. Her obituary says that as a mom, wife and grandma, she acted out her longtime tradition of making a family sit-down meal a priority every Sunday to keep connections strong with her favorite people  – and those special dinners are among their favorite memories now that she’s gone.

Other features

The tower slide is certainly the centerpiece of this park, but here’s a look at its other fun spots, too:

There are two restrooms on site with actual sinks and soap —  always handy.

There’s a second slide there — it’s wide, wavy and a quick-hit with the littlest park goers! (It’s also very short).

Natural log balance beams are hiding behind a short wall on the park’s south end.

There’s a free parking lot on the north end of the park – no need to pay for the paid lots around the park by third party companies. There’s also free street parking in that section. If you do choose to pay for parking, it starts at $2 at the kiosk.

The Foss Waterway promenade was extended along the shoreline with this park’s construction — and now it’s equipped with easy accessibility ramps, too!

Cultural designs

Metro Parks Tacoma and its consultants also incorporated cultural aspects in the park’s design. As noted on the park’s website:

“Historic use of the area, including the past and continued relationship of the Puyallup people to the waterfront, (is) reflected through interpretive elements that include signage and a pathway featuring Native basket-inspired designs.”

In some of our photos, you can see those works of art inlaid into the park’s foundation and toned in an earthy terracotta color that provides a nice contrast to the cement gray and grass-green ground cover underfoot. There’s a plaque explaining the significance of the pieces, and it’s located along the center walkway.  (FUN FACT: That’s actually not grass, but an artificial turf material cropped short so it looks nice and tidy.)

We’ll be back

Overall, I love the park’s setting, features, and that the tower slide design plays into Tacoma’s industrial throwbacks to the area. That said, I have two small items of note:

If you have children, say, age 10 or younger who also tend to wander off – set some ground rules with them before you go. I overheard at least three parents tell their kids to come back from the water’s edge after they took maybe 20 steps off the playground and stepped over the little barriers to reach a flat, much older, concrete block from times past overlooking the water. The waterline also drops straight down from that spot instead of slightly sloping to a little beach scene like some of the older park renderings show. It would be nice to be able to rely more on the fences, but they are are short along the waterfront and seem more for looks than utility.

It’s tough to keep eyes on your child(ren) when they’re inside the tower. From the outside looking in, visibility is low due to its wooden-slat walls that are thinly space on this otherwise fun feature. Apart from the occasional little hand that emerges between the boards for a quick “Hi, Mama!!” wave from above, I wasn’t always 100% sure when Clara and Wyatt were actually climbing and sliding until they popped out the bottom of the tube slide. Or, when I did some laps around the sidelines. However — another nice feature about that bridge that leads into part of the tower is it’s a great spot for parents to peek inside and look up or down for a quick spot-check on their kids.

But even with those few caveats, this is a park I know we’ll be back to again and again.

See ya out there!