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Steve King Fact Sheet
  • Steve King is the creator of the “continuous play concept,” which is used in nearly all of today’s playgrounds and involves combining traditional playground equipment, such as slides and climbers into an endless stream of connected activities that stimulate a child’s physical, social and intellectual development.
  • Steve had been working as a landscape architect with an emphasis on park and playground planning. He decided to undertake the manufacturing of the equipment, in an effort to boost quality while trimming prices. He was also committed to furthering the continuous play concept.
  • Steve King founded Landscape Structures Inc., with his wife, Barbara King, in 1971.
  • Today, Landscape Structures is one of the leading playground equipment manufacturers in the world, employing more than 300 people who produce the company’s products within their 350,000+ square feet of manufacturing and distribution space. Landscape Structures playground equipment is sold by a network of more than 50 independent representative organizations around the world.
  • Steve, a graduate of Iowa State University, is a registered landscape architect and a Certified Playground Safety Inspector. Steve was chairman of a task group of the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) that is working with the U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) and the Access Board to update the ASTM F1487 Specification – a voluntary safety and accessibility standard for playground equipment designed for children 2- to 12-years-old.
  • Steve has authored numerous articles about playground safety and accessibility. His seminars on accessibility and risk management on the playground are well known throughout the world.
  • In 1992, Barb and Steve King were named Minnesota’s Entrepreneur(s) of the Year by Ernst and Young, Inc. Magazine and the law firm of Gray Plant Mooty. They also were recognized with a national honorable mention in the manufacturing category. As a result of this award, Barb and Steve were inducted into the National Institute of Entrepreneurs.
  • In 1993, Steve King was the only manufacturer appointed to the Federal Access Board’s Recreation Access Advisory Committee.
  • Landscape Structures is a founding member of the International Play Equipment Manufacturers Associations (IPEMA), and Steve was a board member and past president.
  • In 2004, Steve King was named a Fellow in the American Society of Landscape Architects (FASLA). The designation of Fellow is conferred on individuals in recognition of exceptional work of professional excellence and outstanding accomplishment over a sustained period of time.
  • Landscape Structures was awarded the 2004 Manufacturing Company of the Year by the Minnesota Association of Manufacturers.
  • Steve and Barb King received the Christian Petersen Design Award from Iowa State University's College of Design in 2004.
  • In 2006, Steve founded the Steven G. King Play Environments Scholarship through the Landscape Architecture Foundation (LAF).
  • Steve serves on the Board of Directors of Biothera, a private company that develops drugs to enhance the immune system.
  • Steve also as the Chairman of the Board of the Sajai® Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to teaching children how to live a wise and healthy life by making good choices on food and activity (Energy Balance).
  • The King Pavilion at Iowa State University's College of Design was named for Barb and Steve King in October 2007. The facility was dedicated on Aug. 24, 2009 and achieved Platinum LEED® certification in March 2010.

    For more information, contact Steve King at Landscape Structures Inc., 601 7th Street South, Delano, MN 55328; 888.438.6574 (888.4FUNLSI).

Steve King, co-founder and chairman of Landscape Structures Inc.
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