“Go outside and play” is a hard sell in a city where the summers are brutal. One of the most difficult parts of being a parent of a young child in Houston is finding things for them to do when temperatures approach triple digits. One main obstacle is that playgrounds become unbearable in the heat, but a handful of Texas architecture firms are designing play areas to compensate for blistering temperatures. This involves rethinking everything.

Climate change is pushing these temperatures increasingly higher; last year’s scorcher was record-breaking. According to the nonprofit news organization Climate Central, average temperatures in Houston have risen nearly five degrees since the 1970s. The two hottest days ever recorded at William P. Hobby Airport were measured in 2000 and 2023, at 108 and 109 degrees respectively. The oppressive heat is linked to declines in mental and physical health as well as isolation.

“I’ve worked in Texas for 12 years, and it’s always been uncomfortably hot, especially during the summers,” says Conners Ladner, a principal landscape architect with Design Workshop in Austin who designed the play space at the Houston Arboretum that opened in 2021. “We need to focus on human comfort.”

How can you make a playground bearable enough to bring kids out? It involves looking at the problem of climate change as something to be adapted to rather than avoided. Ladner says that while politicians in red states tend to deny climate change, they usually accept that playgrounds need to account for the rising temperatures.

“We don’t get a lot of pushbacks, especially in the South,” he says. “I was in a council meeting in Waco, and they were very excited, asking about shade. I think people are starting to understand the limitless value of shade.”

Unsurprisingly for a man involved with the Arboretum, Ladner has great things to say about trees in park spaces. Many of his company’s budgets include funds to plant full-grown trees in and around the park. Sometimes customers balk at the cost, but Ladner says the trees are as integral as the playground equipment.

“If you don’t have shade, no one will use the park,” he says. “All the equipment will just stand there with nobody playing on it. It would just be a waste of money.”

Increased heat is not the only problem caused by climate change. The extreme droughts and winter storms are also taking their toll on the trees planted to keep play areas cool, sending Design Workshop to nurseries for advice.

“In Austin, it’s been very odd,” he says. “We had multiple feet of snow, then we had a massive drought, then another crazy freeze. There needs to be awareness, a discussion on how climate change can affect the project over time.”

When it comes to building the equipment, Ladner focuses on shade sails and avoiding stainless steel. The latter has long been recognized as a burn hazard to children by the US Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) when temperatures exceed 100 degrees.

Lone Star Recreation in Stafford is also working to avoid weather-related playground injuries. The company has designed many spaces in the Houston area, including Roane Park in Missouri City, Ed Thompson Inclusive Park in Pearland, and the Billy Reagan K–8 Educational Center in southwest Houston.

The firm prepares an extensive brief of its design protocols related to heat and climate change for every project. Color, for example, is an important factor. Lighter colors reflect heat and light, while darker colors absorb it. When possible, shades should be dark while high-touch areas such as slides should be light. Plastic is preferred over metal, though plastic can still get hot enough to burn if not properly shaded. A third of the 30 playground burns the CPSC recorded between 2001 and 2008 were from plastic equipment.

Recycled lumber is also a popular choice for playhouses because it prevents warping in the sun like other materials can. Lone Star uses it for playhouses, tables, and seating.

Like Design Workshop, Lone Star Recreation is hyper-focused on shade. Sails, pavilions, and canopies must account for the path of the sun and be high enough to not be climbable. Lastly, water play is becoming more ubiquitous in playgrounds. Splash pads and misters can do a great deal to keep kids cool on equipment. For instance, Lone Star’s work with Lantana Park in Katy has both a shaded pavilion right next to a large splash pad so kids can move in and out of the heat in various ways and still have a place to sit and eat a snack comfortably.

In the Houston summer, looking for that comfort is a necessity for parents. When choosing a playground, look closely for appropriate shade, modern materials, and access to water. No one wants to be dressing wounds from hot metal structures, to say nothing of dealing with disappointed faces when those restless kiddos can’t play for long because of the heat.