top of page
SOCIAL INTERACTIONS
Port Credit Memorial Park
​
Port Credit Memorial Park offers its users many opportunities to socially interact with others. The sociability of the space is determined by the fact that people visit the site with others or use the space as a meeting point.[1] Majority of the interactions that occur on site are preplanned and happen in groups of people that are familiar with each other. It is a sociable space because of the number of activities that can occur on the site. For example, as shown in figure 1, people tend to visit the site for picnics in groups, or to walk the trails in pairs. The park itself attracts people of diverse age groups and ethnicities by implementing a variety of activities such as playing, fishing, and walking that are driven to be used by different people.
Furthermore, the park introduces several social and optional activities. Necessary activities are not evident on site. Users of the space enjoy gathering on site and interacting with others as an aspect of social and optional activities.[2] The fields and walking paths specifically become the most obvious interactive spaces where the majority of sociable experiences occur.
Moreover, the users display the use of the affordance, prospect-refuge, and proxemics theory during their park visits. The park displays the affordance theory by implementing several opportunities of engagement throughout the park, and the prospect-refuge theory by creating moments for users to feel comfortable through giving them opportunities to view surroundings around the park.[3] The proxemics theory on the other hand is less evident at this park considering that there is so much space for groups of people to be dispersed.
Overall, the park offers many opportunities for social interactions which are successfully used by the occupants. The openness for interpretation of space attracts a larger audience and makes the public space very successful.
Figure 1: Large group of people picnicking
Figure 2: People interacting with designed interventions
St. Lawrence Park
The St. Lawrence Park is an interaction hub for residents and visitors coming to see the surrounding landmarks in the area, as it is in close proximity to the main street of Port Credit. The types of activities exhibited include optional and social. Local residents use the space as their backyard while visitors use it to spend their day doing activities such as biking and walking. Necessary activities are also exhibited, as the paths can be used to complete errands, such as a quick run to their mailbox.[4]
Throughout the park, its design allows the users to interpret the space in different ways for a diverse range of people.[5] The park has minimal design features yet it pays attention to proportions of an individual in how they sit, stand and walk through a space. As shown in figure 2, the integration of the ledge, the strategically placed large rocks and the small green space are all design elements that users may not pay as much attention to, but plays a big part in how people used the park.
Though the layout of the park is simple, design gestures within it invite people to use the space in different ways. Children use a seating ledge to climb, while adults use the ledge to overlook the water, ultimately showcasing the affordance theory.[6] The park is also designed to accommodate different circumstances where prospect-refuge theory and personal space theory are mainly exhibited.[7] People perform these theories without knowing it, as they cling and hover around objects and strangers. The park is smaller than the other sites which encourages users to be closer in proximity to strangers, as they do not have as much space to be dispersed.
JC Saddington Park
From analyzing the site, it is clear that JC Saddington Park offers a social bond amongst users from their performance of optional activities. Activities such as recreational exercises, motivate them to engage in social interactions. Users enjoy picnicking or walking through the park while other groups enjoy fishing along the waterfront. Though the park does not dictate certain activities, it still creates areas for people with common interests to interact.
The park has several design interventions that entice a variety of demographic groups to be engaged with the park, including inviting sittable spaces such as grass hills and rock ledges (figure 3).[8] These are major factors that affect the use of the public space in a positive way which are plentiful throughout the park.
The prospect-refuge theory is expressed through the elements of inviting views and a safe function;[9] An example are the water features. The area of these spaces creates a safe and pleasing environment for its users. According to affordance theory, an environment that is designed to support various activities and experiences is ideal for a public space.[10] Certain natural and manmade design features, such as zones of clustered trees, are strategically placed throughout the park to encourage different experiences for the users. The proxemics theory is shown by the way the users organize themselves and the physical space surrounding them.[11] All groups, no matter their size, are physically organized to their specific and appropriate scale. The observation of the varying group sizes alongside the varying distances between everyone expresses the diverse representation of this theory.
JC Saddington Park offers a variety of social spaces and overall has successful elements that it offers in an urban setting. Though it looks simple at a glance, the urban design of the park is strategically thought through.
Figure 3: Rocks acting as seating spaces.
Comparison – Social Interactions
After observing all three sites, Memorial Park, St. Lawrence Park and JC Saddington Park have several elements that create successful social interactions. These parks exhibit different optional, social, and necessary activities that engage a range of people of different demographics. All of these parks create hubs of interaction for people living around the area or for visitors travelling. Specifically, Memorial Park and JC Saddington Park are both destination parks where users plan to visit from places far away encouraging more social and optional activities. St. Lawrence Park on the other hand is more occupied by the local residents of Port Credit that use it for their necessary activities as they require and, optional and social as they desire. Port Credit visitors use the park as they stumble upon or discover it by walking through the neighbourhood.
Through their designs, these parks accommodate different attributes of sociability. The sites tailor a range of groups while considering the users’ ages, ethnicities, and interests. Elements such as the waterfront, walking trails and green spaces throughout the three sites encourage many audiences to interact with others while performing a wide range of activities. Both St. Lawrence Park and JC Saddington Park have small-scale design interventions that invite many demographics. Memorial Park, however, has bigger scale design interventions due to the adjacent skate parks and community arena. These parks are successful in having people use the space in all hours of the day, and even late hours into the night.
Furthermore, theories such as prospect-refuge, affordance and proxemics are expressed by the users in a variety of ways that help create a community within each of the parks. The prospectrefuge theory is the most prominent theory in all three sites as users feel the need to observe their surroundings with a sense of protection.[12] The affordance theory is also showcased at all three sites and works towards creating, encouraging activities and experiences.[13] The proxemics theory however, is better displayed at the St. Lawrence park compared to the other two sites, considering the fact that it is smaller in scale and people do not have as much space to move around or congregate in large groups. These design decisions utilize the three theories to encourage people to interact with strangers and step out of their comfort zone. Design features within each park help people perceive the space, influencing how people organize themselves and behave in a public setting.
The results of this study encourage the enhancement of future design decisions to create public spaces that encourage sociability and a design for a diverse set of demographics. Urban design at both a small and large scale can be impactful to motivate many types of social interactions. All three sites independently and as a whole, showcase many elements of successful and interactive public spaces that can help influence sociable urban designs in the future. Refer to figure 4 which concludes the overall evaluation breakdown of all three sites.
Mann, Tavleen. Success of Social Interactions,Brampton, Ontario. November 4, 2020.
[1] Emilie Pinard, Social: A Public Space and Placemaking. ARCH 4016 EL: Cultural Sustainability (Class Lecture, Laurentian University, Sudbury, On, September 25, 2020).
[2] Jan Gehl, Life Between Spaces: Using Public Spaces (Island Press, 2011).
[3] Debra Flanders Cushing, Miller Evonne, Creating Great Places: Evidence-Based Urban Design for Health and Wellbeing (Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2019)
[4] Jan Gehl, Life Between Spaces: Using Public Spaces (Island Press, 2011).
[5] Debra Flanders Cushing, Miller Evonne, Creating Great Places: Evidence-Based Urban Design for Health and Wellbeing (Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2019).
[6] Ibid
[7] Ibid
[8] Whyte, W. H. (Director). (1980). The Social Life of Small Urban Spaces [Motion picture Online]. New York, NY: The Society.
[9] Debra Flanders Cushing, Miller Evonne, Creating Great Places: Evidence-Based Urban Design for Health and Wellbeing (Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2019).
[10] Ibid
[11] Ibid
[12] Debra Flanders Cushing, Miller Evonne, Creating Great Places: Evidence-Based Urban Design for Health and Wellbeing (Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, 2019).
[13] Ibid
​
bottom of page