“CBL is very committed to working with Soft Play,” says Debbie Millhouse, Regional Brand Director for CoolSprings Galleria. “We have talked to a lot of other companies that make play areas and we really do feel that we get a better product from Soft Play than we could get from anyone else. We have a great relationship with Soft Play.”

CoolSprings Galleria is located in Franklin, TN, a suburb of Nashville and one of the 20 wealthiest counties in the United States. It is also located near a historic and storied area of the town, recognized for battles in the Civil War and, more recently, quaint shops and dining experiences.

As Marketing Director Dana Katterjohn says, CoolSprings Galleria is “the hub of an area that looks to the future while keeping one foot grounded in the past.”

So, when it came time to create the shopping center’s newest play area, mall management worked with the play area’s sponsor, Williamson Medical Center (WMC), whose leaders wanted to create an area that honored the area’s past and the present.

Over the years, the shopping center has had three different play areas, all designed, manufactured and installed by Soft Play. It made sense that they tapped Soft Play again for this special play area.

“Our new play area recognizes the relationship between the newer areas of the city as well as its historic significance,” says Katterjohn. “It’s a new-meets-old theme. We have a giant hot air balloon as a beautiful focal piece, as well as a historic bridge, canon and a trolley that boasts the City of Franklin seal.”

All of the custom play elements, the surround seating and the custom carpeting were designed, manufactured and installed by Soft Play.

“When we were working with our sponsor and conceptionalizing the play area, we sent pictures of historic buildings and relayed the history and what we were trying to convey in the play area,” says Katterjohn. “Soft Play took those thoughts and ideas and brought it to life. They are great at making our sponsor’s vision a reality and they did it such a way that it is safe and fun for children to play on.”

The play area’s sponsor, Williamson Medical Center, is opening a new children’s hospital in 2015.

“We have a strong presence in the Galleria already and felt that sponsoring the children’s play area would be a natural extension of our brand and a great way to remind families that we are going to have a Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital right here on the Williamson Medical Center campus in Franklin,” says WMC CEO Don Webb.

The new play area opened November 15 to a crowd of over 500 eager parents and children.

“CBL is very committed to bringing play area amenities to our properties,” says Millhouse. “It’s another way that we show a community that we care about their experience.”