LEBANON — When they’re looking for a place for their children to play inside, Billy and Larissa Sharff often have to travel an hour away for indoor play spaces.
“Why is there not enough to do in the Upper Valley for kids?” Larissa Sharff would wonder as her family traveled back to Cornish from Manchester or Keene, among other locations.
The Sharffs decided to do something about it: start an indoor playroom of their own. They’re currently renovating a roughly 2,000-square-foot space in the former Revo Casino Spot next to Lebanon Village Pizza on Hanover Street. They’re calling it Cloud Street Kids, and they hope to open in mid-October.
“There’s a wide variety in what play spaces can look like,” Larissa Sharff said. “We’re more of a playroom with some climbing structures, but also hands-on toys, things for children ages zero to 10.”
The Sharffs have two children, ages 5 and 10. Billy Sharff is a filmmaker and children’s book author, and Larissa Sharff previously worked at the Upper Valley Food Co-Op in White River Junction. Cloud Street Kids will be their first brick-and-mortar business together.
Larissa Sharff had been thinking of starting an indoor play space for about two years, and around five months ago the couple started to get more serious about their plans. They went looking at commercial spaces in the Lebanon area and connected with SCORE, a nonprofit organization that helps people looking to start small businesses.
“Lebanon has always been our dream spot,” Billy Sharff said during a recent phone interview that Larissa joined, too. “The Upper Valley is spread out, but it feels like downtown Lebanon is the center of everywhere.”
When people think about play areas for children, often they picture blaring music and flashing lights, Billy Sharff said.
“Our vision is very different from that,” he said. “It’s something that’s both peaceful and calming … for both the kids and adults, but also allows for a certain amount of tumbling and playing in a way that’s a little less overstimulating (than what) you’ll find at certain larger places.”
Cloud Street Kids will feature one large open room, with a seating area and a “cozy corner” where children who need some quiet time can go for a break. They plan to host birthday parties and other gatherings, as well as play time.
“I’m excited to be working on a business that’s not for us but something that’s needed,” Billy Sharff said. “It’s just getting to do something that’s filling a need for other people.”
Parents will be welcome to pick up pizza next door to eat while their kids play. Cloud Street Kids will be open six days a week. Admission will be $14 per child for two hours during open play hours and $8 per additional sibling. Adults and siblings under a year old get in free. Monthly memberships will also be available.
Currently, the Sharffs plan to allow 20 to 25 children in the space at a time, though they might make adjustments once Cloud Street Kids opens. Now, they are in the process of hiring employees.
“Having a kind of community space you can come and build things and climb and explore that’s kind of open most of the time throughout the day, that’s important to us,” Billy Sharff said.
Accessibility is also key for the Sharffs. Their 10-year-old has physical disabilities and “for us, playgrounds were always a bit of a headache,” Larissa Sharff said.
One of their goals with Cloud Street Kids is to create “a comfortable place with things for people with different ability levels,” Billy Sharff said. “We are trying to be sensory-friendly all the time.”
Stephanie Slayton, executive director of The Family Place Parent Child Center, a Norwich-based nonprofit organization that serves families with young children, said that having gathering spots like Cloud Street Kids is important because they provide places for families and children to socialize.
“I think we know that social connections really do help families be strong and healthy and it’s a big part of a child’s development,” Slayton said in a phone interview. “I think when we think about the Upper Valley being a warm and welcoming place for families, if you want that to be there, you need to provide spaces for them to gather and be together.”
She said downtown Lebanon seems like a good fit for Cloud Street Kids, citing nearby Colburn Park and other local businesses that people like to visit.
“I really hope that it thrives and takes off,” Slayton said. “I think it’s something that people will really appreciate having access to, since we don’t really have anything here like that yet.”
