Fircrest Tot Lot (290 Good Days in Tacoma: Where to take Bonny and Clyde)

I know these two little miscreants, let's call them Bonny and Clyde. "Bonny" is my youngest daughter, and "Clyde" is my friend's little boy. By themselves, they are pretty agreeable well-behaved little people. When they get together, all bets are off. Last weekend, the two of them went on the lam at Odyssey 1 and were found huddled together behind the curtain of a shooting game.

Anyway, Clyde's little sister was feeling under the weather, so I took him along for our outing today. We were supposed to all go to a gymnastics class at the Y, but that's a pretty sketchy scenario for the two of them under the best of circumstances. Knowing I'd be without backup, I took them instead to my favorite place to take children who might make an escape attempt: The Gene Goodwin Memorial Tot-Lot, in Fircrest.

The Tot-Lot is a small completely fenced park, with a large sand box, tot-sized swings, and playground equipment designed for the under five set. It's just big enough for the kids to feel like they can really run around, yet small enough to see the kids from wherever you station yourself. There are enough benches and picnic tables to allow a mom to sit and nurse a baby and still keep an eye on older children, or bring along a picnic lunch. There are also convenient restrooms inside the fenced perimeter, although today they appeared to be locked. (That's a new thing, and might just be a one-day issue.) The lot always seems to be very well-maintained, and some of the equipment is only a year or two old.

On any given sunny day, the Lot is packed with young-uns. The City of Fircrest has instituted a policy that no non-resident child care groups are permitted from May through August, and all groups of 8 or more must register at the rec. center.

We wish that Metroparks would build such a well thought out Tot Lot a little closer to home, so that all the little Bonny and Clyde's of Tacoma could enjoy their freedom while we parents enjoy the presence of a nice sturdy fence.

Directions: The Tot-Lot can be a bit difficult to find. Fircrest is a little enclave completely surrounded by Tacoma, where all the streets are renamed and curve back on each other. The easiest way we have found to get there is to drive South on Pearl, until you cross S. 19th (which is conveniently renamed "Columbia" for about a five block stretch while it goes through Fircrest) Pearl then becomes "Alameda." Take Alameda to the next traffic light by the school, and take a left on Regents. From there, take a right on Contra Costa (at Viafore's deli). The Tot Lot is several blocks up Contra Costa, just past Electron St and the Fircrest pool.