Part of the interactive playscape at Darling Park, Sydney Australia by Aspect Studios

This what I’m talking about!  Creating parks that draw children in and capture their imaginations for hours on end through endless movement, experimentation and, what the designers of Dalring Park call, “acceptable risk taking.” (FastCo. Design)

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Can you think of anywhere in your community where some innovation & inspiration is needed?

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NOTE: Traverse City is no Sydney Australia and we won’t be matching this output on our waterfront. However, part of the goal from the 2010 planning process was capturing the essence of creating play through out the entire project, namely at Clinch Park. We do this through great design. 

For more inspiration:

• A Wet-’N-Wild Playground Rethinks How Kids Play And Learn (FastCoDesign)
• Aspect Studios Project Page

Improv Everywhere creator Charlie Todd on the power of absurdity in public spaces

via TEDtalksDirector

* +1 the project shown at the 9 minute mark in this video. 

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By -orla via geométricas

I couple of weeks ago I tweeted:

We need to design places that are neat enough to provide safe and comfortable access and messy enough to provide for adventure and dragon habitat.

This image captures that idea, which is itself an adapted and elaborated upon design/planning principle discussed by Randolph Hester, whom I mentioned on Monday. He doesn’t discuss dragon habitat, but I hazard to guess he would approve. That addition revealed itself after I received the following letter for public comment regarding a current parks and recreation item.

If you think about it, don’t most of your favorite places have a bit of messiness to them?

Thank you for the comment, Alexandria! 

“Paradoxically, we posit that our fear of children being harmed by mostly harmless injuries may result in more fearful children and increased levels of psychopathology.”

I don’t see these kids having many fears. Go have fun.

By Helen Levitt New York, circa 1940 via liquidnight

How do we strengthen our communities?

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We do what we love, unapologetically…And, we do it more often. 

“Reclaiming the Streets,” Traverse City’s Front St. During the Tweed Ride.

More images of Saturday’s casual can be seen here, here and here.

A group photo on the steps of the courthouse can be grabbed from the MyWHaT Flikr site and this image of bikes scattered throughout the lawn in front of the Governmental Center makes my heart sing.

More, like this, please.

Besides thinking about roads and streets (which is tiring), I’ve been thinking about playgrounds, play areas and parks lately. I have a lot to learn on this subject and it’s exciting to think about what we could do with a little investment.

Soon, the parks and recreation commission will be diving into what the natural play area designed into the bayfront plan includes and looks like. As well, the parks and recreation commission would like to see our neighborhood parks have more activity. For most of them, an equipment and landscape facelift is in dire need.

I’m asking, how creative can we be?

As such I’m brainstorming and researching what other places are doing and as far as playgrounds, the concept has expanded way beyond slides and pre-fab equipment. But, not to the loss of things like a slide. Check out these hill slide images via Play Enthusiast.

Hill slides are great because they expand the use of a slide and allow for creative impulses for children. It’s no longer climb up, slide, down, repeat. With a slide built on a hill, the entire area becomes a place for play and can be an attractive addition to a parks landscape. Just one idea that I’d like to see thrown into the TC Parks tool box. (Note to self: do we have a toolbox? Build a tool box.)

The Clinch Park Natural Playground/Playscape

We are really going to need to get this right! This topic needs another, longer post in the future because there are many different ideas about what is and isn’t a natural playscape. Still, I couldn’t help seeing possibilities for the Clinch Park space with this image from The Playground Enthusiast.

It’s not too difficult to imagine the pulled back scene and how that might fit into the space at Clinch Park. Something where children, teens and adults can walk along rocks, play in sand and explore. If no one is there, what is there can be landscaped into an attractive area. These areas can also be universally designed to allow access for everyone. And, of course, the bayfront plan calls for a brook and will certainly need to be more attractive than the area above.

These are a few images and concepts that I wanted to share. If you’ve seen anything creative going on in parks that you’ve visited, please let me and/or the parks and recreation commission know. We meet the first Thursday of every month at 6:30 at the Governmental Center. Also, leave a quick comment with a link here.

NOTE: Any opinions expressed here are mine alone. I cannot speak for other commissioners or the commission on things other than items expressed in our goals and objectives.

Friday September 17th is International PARK(ing) Day.

Traverse City residents are ready to take part and we have plenty of downtown parking. (The waters were tested back in August). Due to scheduling conflicts, it’s proposed that TC hold a PARK(ing) event two-days before the world, on Wednesday September 15th.

Hump Day needs more activity anyway.

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A preliminary PARK(ing) Event on Front St. (photo: GLHowe)

Interested? Can you Take Back Your Time somewhere 10am-2pm on September 15th?

If you are, leave a comment or send me an email. This will largely be self organized, but MyWHaT can offer coordination. A few ideas have already been generated, but I’m personally interested in what many of you can come up with.

What is PARK(ing) Day?

The following is from the creators’ DIY planning network website:

“PARK(ing) Day is an annual worldwide event that inspires city dwellers everywhere to transform metered parking spots into temporary public parks for the public good.”

Fair enough…now, what does can it look like?

PARK(ing) Day: User-Generated Urbanism from Brandon Bloch on Vimeo.

Original concept of PARK(ing) Day by Rebar. www.rebargroup.org. Thank you for sharing.

Related Articles

• Park(ing) Day and Climate Branding (worldchanging.com)
• 700 parking spaces to be transformed into parks (globaltvbc.com)
• NYC Summer Streets 2010, Opening Up Park Avenue (laughingsquid.com)

Street Pong

The Lincoln/Boyd Street Brigade held a small gathering in the street over the weekend, with full permission.

In the TC Street Ordinance (PDF): 1020.05 CLOSING STREETS; PERMIT REQUIRED (PDF). No person other than a police officer or firefighter shall close any street without a permit. A person who violates this section is responsible for a civil infraction.

Permit is easy. $25.00

EXTRA: I do take issue with this section in the Street Ordinance. Streets are for people too…

1020.04 PLAYING IN STREETS AND ALLEYS; TOY VEHICLES.
(a) No person shall play ball or any other game upon any public street or alley.
(b) No person upon roller skates or riding any coaster, toy vehicle or similar device shall go upon any roadway except while crossing a street on a crosswalk. (1976 Code Sec. 9.06)
(c) A person who violates this section is responsible for a civil infraction. (Ord. No. 410. Passed 12-19-94).

Reclaim the streets, beginning with your own.

Traverse City’s only genuine pocket park is The Jay P. Smith Walkway, which was renovated in 2006 with improved landscaping, a drinking fountain, street furniture and a “Grandfathers Fountain” seen above with a bit of a bubble issue. Typically, this is used as a walkway or a casual place to sit and people watch. The bubble scene happened sometime last Sunday morning during the Film Festival. The  young Tanner didn’t seemed to mind and ended up negotiating with his mother for more time. Fun all around, although the city employee who volunteers to clean up the park almost every morning had a bigger than usually job (thanks D.W., the kiddos did have fun).

History

The walkway was established in 1965 by the city commission and named in honor of Jay P. Smith for his leadership in community, which included work with Cherry Festival. In 2006, through city staff and resident volunteer hours, the renovations were completed. Record Eagle writer/editor Loraine Anderson wrote about about Smith and his ties to the community, and the connection to a broader history and sense of place in a short column in 2008. In it, she list those involved with raising money for the walkway.

In 2005, the city decided to rehab the walkway with new landscaping, a “Grandfathers Fountain” with donations from former Mayor Linda Smyka and Socks Construction, as well as new benches and tables bought with money from the families of the late Robert J. Brick Sr., Jackson Bensley, John W. Rennie and Mary Lou Cain. The city also received a donation from the Girrbach family, which includes Pangea Pizza owner Chris Girrbach.

The park is an example of one of the most used intentional public spaces in the city. Below, the fountain can be seen below sans-bubbles and the walkway on a typical summer day being used as any great public space. Follow the link for more images of the bubble scenes.

A small band of us held the summer’s first PARK(ing) celebration in downtown Traverse City this morning. Inspired by the international movement PARK(ing) Day, we thought it was time to utilize more of the public right-of-way for human enjoyment instead of car storage. We did well. In the same amount of space typically dedicated to a car, we had a dozen people participate, even if just for a moment, and still room for our bikes, house plants, seating, table and snacks.

And it only cost $2. Cheap.

We honored the two-hour parking limit and paid our full share (minus the free half-hour). We played checkers, ate cookies, some of us worked using a nearby wi-fi and generally, we sat around and people watched. All what you’d expect people do in parks.

PARK(ing) Images

Click to view slideshow.

This was easy. Anyone can do it. We weren’t bothered by anyone at all. There will be more. Ideas for next time: ping pong, a carpet of sod, a kiddy-pool and more dog biscuits.

Parting shot

Many asked how you get house plants & such downtown without a car. You do it quite easily.

Bill “No Spill” Palladino has two videos up on YouTube: “Choosing A Space and Claiming It” and “Liberal Interpretation of the Michigan Penal Code.” (I lost in the end).

What kind of park could you make?