South Austin indoor playground continues expanding

Children can run, jump and pretend at Loco-Motion Inflatable Play. Husband-and-wife team Steve and Lynelle Sylliaasen opened the 12,000-square-foot indoor playground July 31, 2009, and Lynelle said business continues to grow.

In April 2012, the Sylliaasens launched Loco-Motion Station, a cable show depicting a preschool class with activities for children at home. Lynelle said they are also searching for another potential location in Southwest or North Austin to open in 2013.

Lynelle has worked as a children's dyslexia therapist and speech language pathologist, but the idea for Loco-Motion came to the couple when she was a stay-at-home mom and there was a shift in Steve's career as a land development engineer.

"It was really the downturn in the economy four years ago," he said. "I lost my job, and I figured we had to do something."

With three children of their own, the couple had visited indoor playgrounds with bounce houses.

"We just said, 'We could do this a lot better,'" Steve said.

Loco-Motion hosts an average of 200 to 300 children daily and 80 parties per month. Steve said business is split evenly between the two. During open play, kids can jump in giant bounce houses and visit Little Town, a series of themed playrooms ($8, ages 4–10; $7, ages 1–3; free for adults and children younger than 1).

Party packages start at $100 and include two hours in a reserved area, some supplies and decorations, and a staff member to run the event.

"We can do it all for the parent, or they can do as much as they want," Lynelle said, noting prices depend on the day and number of guests.

Parents can enjoy grown-up amenities including Wi-Fi and couches. But Loco-Motion also provides an environment for family interaction without distractions, Lynelle said.

Connecting through creativity, communication and role-playing is what Lynelle hopes children gain from coming to Loco-Motion.

Loco-Motion stats

• 12,000 square feet — Size of entire playground
• 10 and under — Age of children permitted
• 7 — Number of bounce houses
• 20 feet tall — Size of biggest bounce house
• 10 minutes — Time it takes to inflate a bounce house
• 5 — Number of Little Town playrooms
• Little Town playroom themes — Animal hospital, 1950s diner, theater, grocery store, mechanic's garage
• Thursdays at 7 a.m. — Air time for Loco-Motion Station on Time Warner Cable, ATT U-Verse and online at www.channelaustin.org

Source: Loco-Motion Inflatable Play

Loco-Motion Inflatable Play, 6800 West Gate Blvd., 610-1680, www.locomotionplay.com