In its design, Warehouse Park, the new signature park planned for downtown Edmonton, pays gentle tribute to the meaning of the strawberry.
“We were struck by the story about the meaning of O-day’min, which is the Anishinaabe word for strawberry or heart-berry— the idea that a piece of land can be the gathering place at the heart of a community,” said Suzanne Young, with the City of Edmonton. “The park designers really listened to that and were inspired by that.”
Warehouse Park, which will replace five parking lots in the area of 106 Street and 102 Avenue, sits at the centre of Ward O-day’min. The centre of the park will feature a large, open lawn space shaped like a strawberry, around which the other park elements flow.
“I believe we are designing a space that will delight Edmontonians.” said Young, who is Director of Open Spaces Planning and Design. “A space that has something for everyone and yet still feels connected and personal. A layout with an organic feeling set apart from the grid system and formality of downtown.”
First look at the design!
A design team of architects, landscape architects, engineers and lighting designers from Edmonton and across Canada have come together to make Warehouse Park a place where people can gather and come together.
The team was guided by the vision and design goals for the park. Public feedback, suggestions and conversations helped refine their work in creating a unique Edmonton character for the park. It reflects the regional landscape and provides opportunities for all ages to play, exercise, relax and gather in all seasons.
Here’s your first look at the official designer’s renderings of the park features.
The Clearing
The Clearing is an open green space near the centre of the park. A mound of about three and a half metres (nearly 12 feet) sits in the northeast portion of the space.
The Clearing is designed as a space where Edmontonians can stretch out, read a book, listen to tunes or toss a frisbee in the summer. In the winter, it could be used as a sledding hill.
To make the space come alive at night and during the winter months, a 200-metre-long ribbon of light will softly illuminate and animate the perimeter of The Clearing. Light will pulse around the ribbon, slowly changing colour, reflecting the brilliance of the Northern Lights.
Here’s another perspective on The Clearing in summer green:
And in seasonally adjusted winter white:
West Plaza
The West Plaza includes the Park Pavilion with public washrooms, the Warming Zone and an ornamental water feature. This area will have space for events, markets or gatherings with friends.
The water feature, or the Camp Fountain, is a black granite shallow reflective pool with a series of low water jets. The fountain is designed in the shape of a cut log, with the flow and sound of the water mimicking a campfire. Soothing. Mesmerizing. Gas fireplaces for warmth and ambience are also included.
The Park Pavilion will include public washrooms and space for a concession and/or community space.
Activities
The design for Warehouse Park includes something for everyone. There’s a playground.
A dog off-leash area.
A fitness area.
And a basketball court.
Entrances
Talk about making an entrance! Entrances, actually.
The design team has come up with unique entry points to the park, including entrances along 106 Street and 107 Street.
The 106 Street entry plaza, or the Picnic Blanket, has a checkered tablecloth pattern on the surface that will be animated with large-scale seesaws, games tables, extra long picnic tables, bicycle racks and a bicycle repair station.
The existing 107 Street will become part of the park, and be transformed into a Pedestrian Promenade with an extra-wide path for people to stroll, exercise, gather and connect. The Pedestrian Promenade is wide enough to host different types of events and activities like art fairs, food trucks and markets.
What do you think?
The designs for Warehouse Park were released on November 14, 2022. The design team is eager to hear what you think of the future park space.
“Public feedback is important in any project,” said Young. “With Warehouse Park, in particular, we aimed to create a space that had something for everyone, all the time.”
An online survey is open until December 4. The design team will be hosting online and in-person events through that time frame. Visit edmonton.ca/WarehousePark for more information on engagement opportunities and take the survey
Editor’s notes: the toasty pic at the top of the post shows a designer’s rendering of people gathered in Warehouse Park’s West Plaza in weather similar to what’s outside now if you’re reading this post in November 2022!
