LEGACY PARK. Proposal. Carl Sabanski 2/11/2013

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "LEGACY PARK. Proposal. Carl Sabanski 2/11/2013"

Emerald Randall
5 years ago
Views:

1 LEGACY PARK Proposal Carl Sabanski 2/11/2013

2 NAME: Burnett Park Name the park after Barrie K. Burnett for his innumerable contributions to the community of Pinawa over the years. Why wait until he is gone and in any case the name has a nice ring to it. LOCATION: The preferred location is the rock ridge and area surrounding it located east of the Pinawa Community Centre. See Figure 1 for a photograph of the area taken from the roof of the Community Centre. A lot of volunteer effort as well as help from the fellows from the Pinawa Public Works have gone into pulling the rock ridge out from beneath the earth as seen in the insert. There are a couple of plateaus that can be used as gathering places for different activities. The small one is located in the area of the red crushed limestone pile and the second is in the area of the white crushed limestone pile. In addition, a number of pallets of grass were purchased and laid in the area west of the ridge as can be seen in Figure 1. Barrie Burnett has completed detailed surveys of the rock ridge and area. Figure 2 illustrates some of the information he has gathered. Note that the blue lines show the drainage pattern for the area. The various plateaus of the ridge are set to drain any water from the east end to the west and then to the north into the grassed area. This location for the park is ideal for the following reasons: Although the location is zoned Institutional it is unlikely that anything will ever be built on the land because of the extensive rock ridge located there. The location is centrally located and easily accessible by foot, bicycle and motor vehicle. The location is adjacent to a large parking area that allows visitors coming in automobiles to have ease of parking without having to park on the street. The location is adjacent to the Pinawa Community Centre allowing it to be used for events that lend themselves to that venue. Activities can occur in the Community Centre and the park simultaneously. The location is adjacent to the Pinawa Secondary School allowing it to be used as an Outdoor Classroom (discussed later) for various activities. The location has a large grassed area to the north allowing for the development of a Playscape (discussed later) for young children. The location is close to the Manitoba Hydro power line making it possible to bring electrical power on to the site if required. Many hours of volunteer labour and Town effort have already been put into the development of the area.

3 PARK DESIGN CONCEPT: The park would consist of a number of areas as illustrated in Figure 3. These are only a few ideas and many more will no doubt come to light when the detailed design is developed. One thing is certain, the park will need an area where children can come and play. The following are few ideas that can be considered for further development: 1. PLAYSCAPE (from Wihipedia) Playscape is the term used by landscape architects and designers who specialize in designing and building playspaces that look and feel like a natural environment. Safety o Playscapes are designed to eliminate fall heights. Playscapes have rolling hills and fallen logs rather than a central play structure with monkey bars. Playscapes have much lower injury rates then standard playgrounds. By eliminating fall heights playscapes offer a safe alternative to play structures. o Playscapes have a fraction of the number of child injuries compared to standard playgrounds with play structures. The most frequent injury to children on playgrounds is a fracture of the upper limb resulting from falls from climbing apparatus's. The second most common cause of injury to children on playgrounds is falls from slides. Fall heights are the largest safety issue for most safety inspectors. o Playscapes combat the issue of fall heights by using topography changes for children to climb and experience changes in height. Topography changes allow designers to be creative when placing components in the playscape. Natural Playground o "Natural playgrounds" are play environments that blend natural materials, features, and indigenous vegetation with creative landforms to create purposely complex interplays of natural, environmental objects in ways that challenge and fascinate children and teach them about the wonders and intricacies of the natural world while they play within it. o A totally accessible natural playground creates a beautiful, outdoor play and learning environment. o The technological age has changed the ways in which children play, arguably contributing to childhood obesity. It is therefore up to parents, communities and schools to re-introduce to children what it means to play in the outdoors. o Play components may include earth shapes (sculptures), environmental art, indigenous vegetation (trees, shrubs, grasses, flowers, lichens, mosses), boulders or other rock structures, dirt and sand, natural fences (stone, willow, wooden), textured pathways, and natural water features. The Burrows play ground has elements of a playscape. Figure 4 shows a number of photos of playscape or natural playground ideas. Because natural elements are used in the construction it is possible to keep costs down. Also skilled labour is not required for many of the elements that can be developed for this type of space. Figure 5 is a

4 photograph of a Playhive for which there are plans available on the internet. Items such as this can be constructed during the winter, perhaps in various sizes, and installed the next summer. 2. Outdoor Classroom There are numerous web sites that deal with outdoor classrooms and the time and money expended in developing them. But none compare to the ridge as not many schools, if any, would have this kind of feature located just where it is needed. The following is an sent to the Pinawa School Board on July 22, 2004 regarding the use of the rock ridge as an outdoor classroom. As I mentioned, Barbara brought up the idea of using the ridge as an "outdoor classroom" when she was on the school board. I had found some web sites about this concept and had prepared some information that she presented. This included the address of some sites where grants could be obtained by schools for projects like this. Mary Spitz also presented the concept last season after she and I met on the ridge and I explained what needed to be done. The rock has been stripped to expose a lot of the ridge. This took 8 men from Milner Ridge 4 days to accomplish. They will be back next Tuesday for a few more days to complete the job. The LGD has made available a backhoe and truck for 2 days. At the beginning of the project the LGD provided a backhoe and truck for at least a week. They, along with Pinawa in Bloom, will be paying for the services provided by Milner Ridge. The volunteer fire department has provided their pumper for about 5 hours to start washing off the ridge. They will be helping to wash off the entire ridge which will take quite some time yet. Barrie Burnett has surveyed the area to determine how to deal with the drainage issues. There will be a number of areas that will need to be built up to move the water. One will be quite large and there will be a couple of smaller areas. These can be used as "patios". To keep these areas clean they will need to be topped off with crushed limestone. The limestone will also be used to create a path from one end of the ridge to the other. The ridge has already been used as an "outdoor classroom". Apparently some English classes have been held out there and the high school has used it for a play they performed. Once completed, the ridge could be used for a number of activities. These would include: General classes; Art; Science; Drama; Music; Industrial Arts All you have to do is use your imagination. The ridge is close enough that the elementary school can utilize it. The ridge could also be used as a unique promotional item by the school.

5 There has been involvement in the development of the ridge by the LGD, Pinawa in Bloom and other members of the community. I would like to ask if the school board is interested in participating in the project. Funds are needed for the purchase of crushed limestone to build the patios and pathway. Nothing came of this at that time but perhaps there would be more interest if the project became a partnership with the town and other interested groups. In keeping with the concept of natural elements Figure 6 illustrates an idea for a shelter that could be built for use as a somewhat protected outdoor classroom. It would protect students from the sun and light rains and would just be a neat place to have an occasional class for both students and teachers. We have plenty of trees that would be suitable for such a structure and the cost would be minimal. This means that when it gets old it becomes firewood and another one is built to take its place. 3. Pavilion The east end of the rock ridge is an ideal place to construct a pavilion. The pavilion could be in the form of a bandstand but would serve as a multifunction structure for the entire community. The pavilion could be used for many things: It would form part of the concept of the outdoor classroom. Many different classes could use the pavilion: art, science, drama, etc. The concept of the outdoor classroom could extend to any community group wishing to give any type of presentation. Groups such as the bands, choir, drama club and others could perform here. Presentations organized by the library. Special occasions: weddings. Activities organized through the recreation office. Some of these activities might lend themselves to future expansion and the inclusion of fundraising activities at the site, e.g. food vendors, crafts, etc. One advantage of this location is the proximity to the Community Centre where there are public washrooms and a large parking lot. Another is that there is a large green space surrounding the ridge. Families would come to participate in an event and the children could play in the Playscape. It is easy for parents to see their kids anywhere in the area. Depending upon the design it could be easy to see the activity on the pavilion from anywhere.

6 Figure 7 shows a photograph of a TransCanada Trail kiosk. It is included only to show its interesting roof design. Whatever the design of the pavilion it should be interesting if not unique. The concept of a bandstand requires further investigation and development. For example, most photographs of bandstands appear to show they have ceilings. This may have something to do with acoustics. The bandstand may need to be raised to keep it open on all sides. This would allow for a location to place the electrical services. If the service was brought from the Manitoba Hydro line across the street this could be the hub from which power could be routed around the rock ridge for other purposes such as lighting. 4. Other Elements There are many interesting elements that can be incorporated into the park. The following are a couple that may be considered. Figure 8 is an illustration of a classical labyrinth. They are an interesting feature and can be a form of relaxation and meditation when used. Unlike a maze with its many paths, some being dead ends, the single winding path of a labyrinth moves one back and forth to the centre, requiring only that the walker place one foot in front of the other. Often the experience slows one's breathing, focuses the mind, and induces a peaceful state of being. In the last ten years this labyrinth design, more than three thousand years old and found around the world, has flowered once again: in parks and gardens, hospitals and retreat centres, prisons and churches, schools and corporations. Figure 9 is an illustration of a classical labyrinth where I have made a drawing for its construction. The labyrinth can be made from various materials depending upon the budget available. Figure 10 is a photograph of an analemmatic or human sundial. This sundial is interactive as it uses the shadow cast by a person to indicate the time. More of this type of sundial is appearing around the world because it involves the visitor in its use. Various materials can be used to make this sundial and it does not have to cost a great deal. The one shown uses concrete and broken pottery obtained from a potter s mishaps. In the background is a place called Keppel Henge. The Henge uses a central stone of granite that casts its shadow on large limestone megaliths at different times of the year; vernal equinox, summer solstice, autumnal equinox and winter solstice.

7 The possibilities are endless and they are all learning tools for the outdoor classroom. METHOD OF RECOGNIZING DONATIONS With the park being so close to the Community Centre contributors could be listed on one of the walls inside the building. This makes the type of signage used easier to select as it will be protected from the elements, particularly the sun. This could potentially make it less expensive and provide more design opportunities. In keeping with the aspect of the natural elements of the park there could be four levels of contribution. These could be the four elements: EARTH, WATER, FIRE and WIND. These levels could be recognized with artwork, an example of which is shown below (taken from the internet). A contest could be held for individuals to enter art depicting the four elements. As well as having their name listed in the Community Centre the contributor could receive a token of appreciation. For example, the art below lends itself to bookmarks. However, the different levels would have a bookmark made from different materials. They would all be beautiful but slightly more expensive as the contribution level rises. The artwork itself could perhaps become a source for raising funds.

8 Figure 1

9 Figure 2

10 Figure 3

11 Figure 4

12 Figure 5

13 Figure 6

14 Figure 7

15 Figure 8

16 Figure 9

17 Figure 10

Leading Change in Early Childhood Environments. Toni and Robin Christie. Childspace, Wellington. Aotearoa/ NZ.

Leading Change in Early Childhood Environments Toni and Robin Christie Childspace, Wellington Aotearoa/ NZ www.childspace.co.nz Design principles An Overview Protected corners as building blocks, connected