Lisa's Update on Grandview Park
This is Lisa's update on Grandview Park: "Just wanted to give you all a brief update on our meeting with David from the Parks Board this afternoon.
Several of us met ahead of time to discuss specifics such as court size, heights of boards, surface, lighting, power, storage, etc. We decided on:
- a court size of 120' x 70' (similar to the court sizes during the East Van Crown).
- Board height is still up in the air, though above or below handlebar height is ideal.
- Tennis surrface (blue is preferred)
- Seating opportunities (bleachers or benches)
- Pit-style court
David showed us two of the three concepts he has developed that we will see during the open house on January 19th. Each moves teh washroom to the north side of the park to improve sight lines through the park. The playground and water park are also moved to the north end. The cenotaph will be more of an entrance point with seating and tables and low-level landscaping.
Two options for the court include running the courts north and south as opposed to the existing east-west orientation. The other has a multi-purpose court on an angle, in a more north-south orientation. Our preferred court dimensions will fit this as it is looking like a hockey-style court. A third option, which we didn't see, has a multi-purpose court plus one tennis court.
David's concerns were the impact bikes would have on surface maintenance, light pollution (though we did discuss low-level lighting).
He was very open to accommodating us for board height, seating opportunities, maintaining good spectator viewing, and a secure storage box. He was also interested in the pit-style court, though expressed concerns as to its depth and that allowing for undesirable activity.
The oak tree will be retained, as will the larger tree to the northwest corner of the court. The tree on the west side by the stairs will likely be removed as will the one closest to the gate on the northwest corner.
The concepts are being done by the parks board and the final design is currently out for tender. I can't locate the RFP document on-line. Apologies (though, really it would only be of interest to us urban planning geeks!).
The next open house is January 19th at the Britannia Community Centre in the room under the library from 6pm to 8pm. More information here: http://vancouver.ca/parks/info/meetings/2010meeting.htm
All in all a very good day for bike polo despite the rain.
Thanks to Martin, Ken, Robbie, Cara, Tom and Drunkie Unkie for input!
This sounds amazing, although I'm having difficulty visualising it.
As someone who likes to bounce off the boards with a shoulder, I'd vote for higher boards in a pit so that people in the bleachers still have a good view.
And don't make it too nice for tennis players - would tennis still be played there?
Nice work Lisa! Wow, this was a pipe dream less than a year ago when we first learned of the scheduled park reno. It sounds like the parks board is with us on this but at this point I imagine they could still easily cut us out of their plans. I hope all of us can attend the open house on the 19th so we have a strong representation. Please make it a priority to attend if you can.
Polo Accommodations for sure...
I doubt the Parks Board will completely scrap any plans for accommodations for bike polo. David taking an hour or so out of his Saturday to meet with us is evidence of that. The key is to creating a space for us that doesn't eliminate others from using it. It won't be only for bike polo, but it should easily allow other uses.
That's always been our argument, there is a significant need for multi-purpose sport space in the public realm and now we are the ones who have a hand in designing it!
I think the reason David has been so open to us is because we have been organized, we (though individually, it appears collective) have a vision for playing bike polo in Grandview Park. As a planner, its much easier to work with people who are enthusiastic than it is to work with those who aren't.
So anyone who wants to have a say in what bike polo at Grandview Park will look like, by all means, come on out on the 19th.
See you there!