Hester Street Playground

JM Lifestyles worked with Hester Street Collaborative to create blocks for one of their community projects.  

"Hester Street Collaborative is a design/build non-profit organization created to improve the physical environment in under served NYC neighborhoods. HSC works with residents and students in affordable housing developments, public spaces, and schools on participatory architectural projects. It is our belief that a design-build process can improve the quality of life in underserved communities in two ways: By creating compelling places, which serve the local residents; By building social capital through the process of articulating and realizing a shared vision."  http://www.hesterstreet.org/

Information about the project is below that I got from their facebook posting on the project, 
"HSC together as part of the SDR Coalition has been involved in bringing community members to the table with the parks department around the design of this playground. Back in 2006, HSC and the SDR Coalition held a series of events to get community input about how people used this playground and what they need and would like to see in the renovated playground. Each member of the SDR coalition helped with a different activity to get people thinking creatively about the park. Over 1000 people became involved.
We were really interested in getting youth involved, students from M.S. 131, or the Chinatown YMCA who use the park every day, to hear what they think. Ultimately this input process expanded the conversation between the community and the parks department and a design was developed for the playground that incorporates a lot of the ideas and suggestions from people that have participated. Something that grew out of this was a desire to get kids involved in making things for the park to beautify it temporarily over the last few years like lanterns for each lunar new year. Now students from M.S. 131 and the Chinatown Y have created mosaic blocks that will be permanently installed within the new brick walls of the playground to leave their mark on their new park!"
For more information about Hester Street Collaborative visit their website or blog:
 http://www.hesterstreet.org/
http://hesterstreetcollaborative.blogspot.com/2007/03/pavers.html