“Oohs and ahhs” are sometimes heard at grand openings, but from the mouths of children you can always take them as sincere.
Kangaroo Jake’s, a new 19,500-square-foot playground in Armuchee Village, played host to children from Calvary Baptist pre-school and others Thursday. It’s a place where children can play safely, and parents can relax if they want to, said owner Christi Solzbach.
The playground has 15 inflatable games, like the moonwalks seen at many children’s birthday parties, but Solzbach thinks the most popular are likely to be Air Bots, where children put on inflatable suits and can safely whack away at each other in the inflatable ring, and the Velcro Wall, where children put on Velcro suits and leap (or are tossed) onto a Velcro wall, where they stick, defying gravity, until a staff member pulls them down.
Solzbach has six full-time employees and she requires that one or two with cardiopulmonary resuscitation training be on site at all times. Two of her current employees are majoring in early childhood education.
She said she would work out discounts for community groups and church groups “because it’s a way we can give back.”
The center is designed for ages 2 to 12, but younger children are welcome when parents bring in older siblings. The price for children 4 and up is $7 Monday through Thursday and $8 Friday through Sunday.
Kangaroo Jake’s hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday; and 1 to 5 p.m. on Sunday. It’s located between Food Lion and CVS Pharmacy in Armuchee Village on Martha Berry Highway.
