. new park concept
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The City of Calgary has released a preliminary concept for Beltline’s new park. Created by Deron Miller of Scatliff + Miller + Murray, the design addresses many of the principles identified in an earlier open house conducted by Beltline Communities.
In the 2007 open house, participants said they wanted a park that would accommodate active and passive uses activities, provide trees, flowers and other plantings, include public art, allow for easy pedestrian passage through the park and be well-lit and safe. The design concept includes a large oval greenspace at the centre of the site, called the “grand lawn” surrounded by a paved oval walk. This would provide an uninterrupted area for picnics, reading or people watching and also allows pedestrians to cut across or walk around the site.
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Also included in the design are gardens at the northwest corner – something Beltline residents expressed a great desire for. There are also plans for a stage at the south end of the oval. This is intended to be used for occasional programming, including events put on by the CBE. When not being used as a stage, it becomes a water feature.Abundant seating and trees are present in the southeast corner of the site. This area, called the “fire theatre”, would also include fire pits. The oval walk may be flooded in the winter for skating and the fire theatre would provide much needed warmth in the cold winter months.
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Opportunities for public art exist throughout the park and may come in the form of the oval walk, the stage/water feature, the fire theatre, gardens, and the sentinels, conceptualized as 12 Ave SW identity markers. The City has allocated $370,000 for the public art and has already put a call out for submissions. The entire project has a $3 million budget.