{"id":6184,"date":"2015-05-21T16:21:15","date_gmt":"2015-05-21T22:21:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/?p=6184"},"modified":"2015-05-22T10:57:24","modified_gmt":"2015-05-22T16:57:24","slug":"the-picnic-tables-at-amiskwaskahegan-need-to-go","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/2015\/05\/21\/the-picnic-tables-at-amiskwaskahegan-need-to-go\/","title":{"rendered":"The picnic tables at Amiskwaskahegan need to go!"},"content":{"rendered":"

An article<\/a>\u00a0in Metro Edmonton last week described Amiskwaskahegan (also known as Beaver Hills House Park) as a \u2018drug park\u2019 that is deterring people from using the public space. Some residents\u00a0disagreed and argued that the reputation\u00a0has largely been shed in recent years with the park’s redevelopment and ongoing neighbourhood revitalization. Regardless of that debate, the fact remains that this park, like many parts of downtown, lacks vibrancy beyond the work hours and special events. There is limited public surveillance on the space which can create a sense of vulnerability.<\/p>\n

One thing that discourages people from using the park throughout the day are the picnic tables.<\/p>\n

The problem with this furniture in parks that need flexible layouts is their difficulty\u00a0to move around. When distributed\u00a0poorly, the seating arrangement can be uncomfortable and limits the number of people who\u00a0can sit at one spot. Individuals are forced to either claim an entire table or share with others. Furthermore, they don’t allow for people to relocate their seats if there’s unwanted noises, smells,\u00a0wasps, sun, or shade. This all factors into the awkwardness of sitting at this park when it isn’t busy.<\/p>\n

The removal of picnic tables in favour of lighter chairs\u00a0at Churchill Square\u00a0demonstrates this point quite clearly:<\/p>\n

\"Churchill<\/a>
Churchill Square before and after the park furniture was changed. Sources: Wikipedia, City of Edmonton.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Here, you can see a drastic improvement\u00a0in the way people interact with others due to this increased flexibility and comfort. Combined with\u00a0food vendors,\u00a0activities, and more visibility, I believe\u00a0Beaver Hills can replicate a similar success. Although it is inevitable that some of the chairs will be stolen every year, the improved quality of life for residents, workers, and businesses nearby can be worthwhile.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

An article\u00a0in Metro Edmonton last week described Amiskwaskahegan (also known as Beaver Hills House Park) as a \u2018drug park\u2019 that is deterring people from using the public space. Some residents\u00a0disagreed and argued that the reputation\u00a0has largely been shed in recent years with the park’s redevelopment and ongoing neighbourhood revitalization. Regardless of that debate, the factContinue reading “The picnic tables at Amiskwaskahegan need to go!”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8111,"featured_media":6186,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[21,25,29],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6184","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-parks","category-spacing","category-urban-design"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe picnic tables at Amiskwaskahegan need to go! - Spacing Edmonton<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/2015\/05\/21\/the-picnic-tables-at-amiskwaskahegan-need-to-go\/\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Paul Giang\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/2015\/05\/21\/the-picnic-tables-at-amiskwaskahegan-need-to-go\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/2015\/05\/21\/the-picnic-tables-at-amiskwaskahegan-need-to-go\/\",\"name\":\"The picnic tables at Amiskwaskahegan need to go! - Spacing Edmonton\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/2015\/05\/21\/the-picnic-tables-at-amiskwaskahegan-need-to-go\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/2015\/05\/21\/the-picnic-tables-at-amiskwaskahegan-need-to-go\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2015\/05\/5793880777_a1a67ea1b3_z.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2015-05-21T22:21:15+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2015-05-22T16:57:24+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/#\/schema\/person\/5c568d4ad3a9e6a81f55f1a6b7e94b5f\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/2015\/05\/21\/the-picnic-tables-at-amiskwaskahegan-need-to-go\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/2015\/05\/21\/the-picnic-tables-at-amiskwaskahegan-need-to-go\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/2015\/05\/21\/the-picnic-tables-at-amiskwaskahegan-need-to-go\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2015\/05\/5793880777_a1a67ea1b3_z.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/9\/2015\/05\/5793880777_a1a67ea1b3_z.jpg\",\"width\":640,\"height\":480,\"caption\":\"Photo by Mack Male.\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/2015\/05\/21\/the-picnic-tables-at-amiskwaskahegan-need-to-go\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"The picnic tables at Amiskwaskahegan need to go!\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/\",\"name\":\"Spacing Edmonton\",\"description\":\"Canadian Urbanism Uncovered | Edmonton Architecture, Urban Design, Public Transit, City Hall, Parks, Walking, Bikes, Streetscape, History, Waterfront, Maps, Public Spaces\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/#\/schema\/person\/5c568d4ad3a9e6a81f55f1a6b7e94b5f\",\"name\":\"Paul Giang\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/spacing.ca\/edmonton\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8dad202f181ce90ee1809ba23cac7aa7?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8dad202f181ce90ee1809ba23cac7aa7?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Paul Giang\"},\"description\":\"Paul Giang grew up exploring Edmonton's landscape, which led him to become an ecologist and urbanist. 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