Biržai Children’s Playground is located next to the Evangelical Reformed Church in Biržai, Lithuania. Completed in 2023, the project shows how a contemporary outdoor playground can respond to a historically sensitive setting through landscape design, topography, and play. More than a recreational area, it functions as a public play space that connects local identity, everyday use, and social interaction.
The design concept for the playground was developed by Terra Firma LT, whose landscape architecture approach rooted the project in the history of Biržai Castle and translated that reference into landform, structure, and surfacing. First sketched in 2019, the project developed from a smaller castle-themed playground into a more spatially coherent play landscape.
At the centre of the site stands a multi-functional castle structure with towers, bridges, ladders, climbing elements, and slides. Around it, the landscape extends through relief hills, tunnels, and surfacing patterns that recall islands, drawing on the form of Biržai Castle, its fortifications, the surrounding lake and river, and local history. Rather than treating the site as a flat surface for playground equipment, the project makes topography an active part of play.
The castle and embankment zones encourage climbing, crawling, balancing, and role play. Island-like areas and balancing elements extend the experience of movement and exploration. Robinia wood used in the play structures provides a durable, low-maintenance solution with a natural appearance that supports the historical and landscape concept of the site.
At the same time, the interactive Lappset MEMO play system introduces a digital layer that helps engage older children through movement-based tasks and games. Carefully integrated interactive play equipment broadens the age range of the playground without dominating the overall landscape concept.
The EPDM rubber surfacing plays an equally important role. Beyond its safety function, the surfacing contributes to the storytelling of the space through patterns that evoke water, stones, branches, and islands, as well as motifs such as a three-headed dragon and a knight. At the same time, the surfacing improves usability by allowing easier movement and supporting access for children and caregivers with different mobility needs.
Inclusion is a key consideration in contemporary playground design. By combining active zones with calmer areas and different levels of challenge, the playground supports children with different physical, sensory, and social needs, including those who may benefit from quieter spaces, varied stimulation, or more flexible ways of engaging with the environment.
The implementation of the project required careful coordination so that the built result would retain the original spatial concept while meeting requirements for safety, durability, and functionality. The final quality of the Biržai play area lies in the precise integration of topography, EPDM surfacing, play equipment, and thematic elements into a coherent whole. In this process, Fixman played an important role in ensuring a smooth transition from design to implementation, from coordination and support in decisions on materials, details, proportions, and element placement to the final installation
Project Credits
Landscape Architecture: Terra Firma LT, MB
Design Team: Linas Ūsas, Ramunė Baniulienė, Aurimas Dališanskis
Playground Implementation & Equipment: Fixman LT, UAB
Architects: Aplan, UAB
Client: Biržai District Municipality
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