Stewardship Report

vernon//adanac report (summer 2017-spring 2018)

stewardship:

frida&frank at vernon and adanac:

In 2017, the City of Vancouver began exploring new forms of stewardship models for three public plazas across the City. This pilot program prioritizes the understanding that plazas provide unique opportunities to address our City’s growing population by serving as the public’s living room. Successful plazas act as sites for social engagement, play, and interaction in addition to providing spaces for events and commerce.

Through our role as activators of the space, on top of being regular users of it in our daily lives, we soon developed a special connection with the space. From the moment we first started playing ping-pong there, feelings of responsibility started to grow with every interaction. Even though it was slightly exciting during our first time, literally offering ping pong paddles to the fast-going bikers in hope they would stop for a game, it soon proved to be an easy spot for us. By means of a simple game of ping pong we actively invited people to engage with this new space, opening their eyes to the possibilities that public space has to offer. In a way we were creating a platform for people to share their ideas and dreams about public spaces in general as well as their visions for Vernon//Adanac.

In June of 2017 we started our engagement with the Vernon//Adanac Plaza and initially used this as one of our primary sites for our VIVA Activation Grant project. While the road was initially blocked off as a part of a safety upgrade to the Union-Adanac Corridor, it became a great opportunity to create a public space featuring seating, greenery, skateboarding features, and more.

partners:

frida&frank

Seeing the potential in this space and a clear longing for genuine connection, frida&frank began playing ping-pong at the Plaza on a weekly basis. This allowed us the opportunity to connect more deeply with many residents and local businesses and start to foster a sense of place at Vernon//Adanac. Through our relationship with the community and in partnership with the City of Vancouver, we have since been working to explore grassroots stewardship. Considering the context and location of this plaza, an intersection where industrial, commercial and residential activity meet, we were very aware of the fact that this plaza deserved a unique approach. In the case of Vernon//Adanac users of the space were actively invited by us to be involved in the transformation of the space. In our opinion this showed a stark contrast with other plaza development such as the Bute-Robson Plaza in the downtown area. It was our intention all along to use the power of process in our exploration of grassroots stewardship to empower and invite the community to reimagine public space at Vernon//Adanac.

timeline:

winter 2018

june 30

june 2017

contents:

pop-up ping-pong page (5)

special events page (6)

planting day pages (7-8)

making mosaics pages (9-10)

evening events pages (11-12)

observations pages (13-14)

recommendations pages (15-16)

The first time we popped up the ping-pong table at Vernon//Adanac the most common reaction we got was one of surprise. While we were getting used to casually inviting people to play a game, the people that passed by without stopping would cheer and share their enthusiasm. As for the people that did spent some time with us, they sometimes had to overcome some kind of barrier in the initial contact. The common ground for conversation was this new traffic situation we were in, and many times we talked about how users of the space experienced the impact of the change. Though often they thanked us afterwards for the spontaneous moment of play and connection. We’ve had people play from all ages and local residents as well as tourists, and many times strangers got to know each other during a game of ping pong. Some would even challenge each other for another round the following week. Overall we can say that ping-pong has functioned as an incredible tool for people to get to know the space better and starting conversations about perspectives on public space.

dates: june 30th july 2/3/12/19/26 august 9th/30th nov 12 dec 14 (5-9pm)

rainy days too!

ping-pong all year round?!

ng-po i p

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all you need is: -hot tea to stay warm -temporary tarp cover -all weather players -more lighting -persistance

stop in design

play abuild game

shareactivate a laugh

afternoon jazz (august 23rd)

focus e l y t s free p grou

3-par

t draw i

pinea

pple s ocks!

I change perspectives!

games & crafts (september 27th)

Music is one of the best ways to bring people together in a space, as well as giving a brief moment of joy to those who pass by on the bike route. For this event we collaborated with some local jazz musicians to play in the space while people played ping-pong on each side of the bike way. As jazz music filled the air, people would pass through and eventually turn around to come enjoy the scene which was full of life and people of all ages. Freestyle Focus Group ended up collaborating with the jazz group for part of the event, which created a great mixing of jazz and hip-hop as well as getting people in the space to actively participate.

engagement

ngs!

I bounce away sometimes engaging poeple who pass by!

conversation

experience

greening the space september 22nd

When Vernon//Adanac was first created, the bike path was lined with planter boxes that sat empty for months. After meeting with Allan and Paul at the beginning of September, Ross told us about his desires to fill the planter boxes soon. We found this to be an important opportunity to implement the power of process and to involve the community in the transformation. Everyone was invited to help us plant and many people stopped by to join us including:

After the planting was completed, Vernon//Adanac transformed into an impromptu celebration and we were joined by nearby neighbours who came out and offered snacks, and decorated the space as if it was their own private living room for a few hours.

Freestyle Focus Group came by as well and many people took their turn on the mic and threw down a few lines while others danced to their rhymes. Many games of ping-pong were played including a few games of ‘Around the World’ with almost 10 people joining in. Overall, throughout the afternoon over 100 people stopped and joined for bits and pieces of activities.

rendering to reality!

(12-5pm)

community participation

da

anting l p

-frida&frank (3) -City of Vancouver staff (2) -CityStudio Cohort (25) -Russell Foods employees (4) -Friends of frida&frank (5) -Local residents (10) -Passer-by’s (15)

Renderings provide are a great tool for providing an idea of the infinite potentials available in a space. We usually find that the actual events turn out more exciting than the rendering itself.

y anticipation

beautification

collaboration

transformation

celebration

come participate in A

dates: chalk the benches (september 13th) mosaic prep (Oct 3rd) mosaic day (oct 4th)

The mosaics on the southside of the Plaza were a collaboration with a friend who had received a Small Neighbourhood Grant ($300) from the Vancouver Foundation for a mural in East Vancouver. However, she hadn’t found the right location yet, and we saw this as an opportunity to partner together.

m ake some art adanac & vernon plaza k ids are welcome e xplore your creativity o pen invitation v olunteers needed cr ating tog ether th ough collabor ration

For the mosaic, we invited everyone who passed through the space to join us in the process by breaking tiles and adding them to the benches. The design, although loosely drawn out by frida&frank, was up to the participants to fill in to their liking, allowing them to also participate in the process. 30+ people stayed for differing times ranging from 10 minutes to 3 hours throughout the day. While actively adding to the space people also got to know the other collaborators and conversations ensued.

try it in chalk!

when: wednesday october 4th, 2017 where: vernon & adanac time: all day (11am-sundown)

grouting (oct 5th) interested in volunteering? contact frida.and.frank@gmail.com meeting for volunteers will be held on october 3rd from 6:30-8pm

mosaic pt. 2 (november 27th)

m

Since the very beginning, we have wanted to enliven Vernon//Adanac with colour and dreamed of creating a mosaic at the site. Mosaics in themselves act as a great metaphor for disparate pieces coming together to make a whole. They also are incredibly durable sources of colour as opposed to paint which wears down after a while.

osaics

ideate

prep materials

smash tiles

On september 13th, 2017 we had community members draw in chalk any ideas they had for a mosaic/mural. It was a fun way to visualize possibilities in the space.

One of the most delightful parts about opening the art making process to the public was also seeing/hearing the responses of the commuters who passed by the space. Most shouted words of encouragement and praise as the continued on their way. The art piece itself became a spectacle; an object of interest and conversation. *mosaic photos by Allison Boulier*

communal creation

grouting

enjoyed by community

the power of process

cinema night september 6th (5-9pm) borrowed materials: -a projector from a friend -string lights from VPSN -a generator from VPSN -a white screen from MakerLabs

he

ht u p g t li

Cinema-on-the-Street was an event showcasing what’s possible with the help and hands of many! We had visions of truly transforming this space and reached out to many community members to help us do so.

illuminate

While there were “bumps” in the road for this evening regarding access to power, people were incredibly supportive of the event and no one seemed to mind the issues.

Everybody that was present was actively involved in the redecoration of the space, something we have experienced as an important element in our work in public space.

People were most excited to see the community coming and working together rather than the impromptu programming itself. Unfortunately, after about 30 minutes of playing the animation we were showing, the generator died which meant that we no longer had use of the projector or the lights. While this was the intended programming of the evening, we already had so many people who stopped by throughout the night and people continued to stick around for hours afterwards.

LuminoCITY was a pop-up art installation on January 27th, 2018 by Tiffany Blaise and Hanna Benihould.

In coordination with ‘winteraction’ the piece contributed light and a sense of whimsy to the space as bikers passed through. Tea lights were placed in the umbrellas as hung from the trees. The light encouraged social interaction in the space, as well as quotes painted on the outsides of the umbrellas.

ni gh t

One of the major successes of the evening was lighting the space up and bringing ambience and coziness to Vernon//Adanac. The lighting completely transitioned the space into a nice environment and was the biggest attraction to the space at night. Having access to electricity would be immensely transformative to the space and provide opportunities for lighting and coming together through similar events, and many more.

congregate

participate

animate

time for winteraction!

ELECTRICITY!

facilitate

and

One of the key takeaways from this event was our belief in the power of process, meaning that people like being given the opportunity to create and be apart of a visual transformation. This process makes people feel empowered and involved, therefor taking more ownership in the outcome. Moments after we arrived to Vernon/Adanac to get ready, we were joined by people who wanted to learn more about what we were doing and help us get ready. Very quickly, our group size grew and people helped us to screw in lightbulbs, and set up ping-pong. The people who helped us set up are the ones who ended up staying at the event the longest, and as new people came by they also took on an impromptu welcoming role and helped bring others into the space. While we had not asked anyone to help us with set-up or take down, we ended up having about 25 people who helped us spontaneously manage the event.

decorate

fascinate

collaborate

community members

observations the power of a weekly return The simple fact that we could say ‘see you next week’ proved to be a really powerful element in our activations.

It offered the possibility to develop relationships with people that pass by or already use the space on a daily or weekly basis, such as Gary, who biked to English Bay to see the sunset every day; the group of bike messengers who gathered in the space after a day’s work; or our now friend Will who we met when he walked by on his way home from work every evening. Because of this continuous presence, we were also able to witness seasonal changes as well as the different traces of use including problematic ones. More interesting to us as ‘active citizens’ were the discoveries of what is involved in taking care of public spaces; the many different actors and the different services that are provided by the city, the surrounding businesses and users.

chatting with some local commuters

creating a hub for conversation

• Building relationships with nearby business community: Russell Foods, Savoury Chef, Landyachtz, Luppolo • Meeting several people working for the City of Vancouver that are professionally connected to the site (Allan, Ryan, Ross) • Meeting neighbors to the site, people who live in the surrounding area • School children (coming by on their way home, boy who helped us clean the mosaic) • Bikers • Strathcona BIA • Pedestrians • Making friends through community building (friends we’ve made through Vernon//Adanac: Will, Nana, Sean, Miranda, Gary, … )

explaining public space and nurturing civil agency

The observations we made and the many informal conversations about the traffic safety changes we had, were continuously communicated with designated persons at the City of Vancouver. People found the yellow poles dangerous, the lighting was bad in dark hours, a wider bike path would be better, the concrete blocks came across as very aggressive, the many signs were causing confusing; to name but a few. To us a big part of our role was handing people that had questions or critical remarks with the tools to become more aware of the framework of public space and their agency within that.

the art of maintenance Care of a space is closely connected to a sense of ownership. As soon as users of a space are involved in maintenance, they develop a different relationship with a space. We witnessed this during the set up and take down of the ping pong table, the bike-in movie night, the planting day, the mosaic day and around the cleaning of a tag that was placed over the mural on Savoury Chef’s sidewall. The otherwise very invisible services both municipality and BIA provide became visible to us, and we strongly believe that visualization of maintenance could really shift people’s perspectives on public space and possible civil stewardship

next steps: Installing access to electricity: • Will enable community groups to program their own events such as movie nights • Ability to install ambient// cozy lighting in the trees

Providing a plaza maintenance kit: • Maintenance is part of taking care of a space and will complete the experience of transforming the space for an event. This kit could also be accompanied by an overview of the regular cleaning activities of the space, as a tool to create more visibility of the existing maintenance services (by CoV and • Stratcona BIA)

More accurate, comprehensive research element of the space and the users: • As a small team who spends most of our time and energy talking to people at Vernon//Adanac, it made it very hard to do proper research and get cohesive data about what was happening at the space.

Continue with regular programming and hosting regular events:

a covered library in nyc

a more rustic design

example from the center for urban pedagogy

work with the community to design and build a curiosity cabinet/ kiosk which will: • Inform people about how to hold their own events at this site • Give information about how to apply for a permit, get access to electricity • Come up with engaging signage// poster about this process in a way that’s engaging and accessible. How can we use this as a tool for education?

• Could we have a link to an email address such as adanaccommunityboard@cov.ca that’s a direct and relevant e-mail address for people to reach in regards to vernon/adanac? A lot of times communication gets lost and it’s nice for people to “speak to someone directly” • Could just forward to the VIVA inbox for example, but it helps centralize the issues as well

Finish mosaic-ing the furniture to brighten the space and encourage sense of community Better navigation into the bike path the mitigate potential accidents.

long- table dinners

monthly movie nights

live musical performances

we look forward to continuing to transform this space into a place! thanks again for all your support throughout this process.

-the frida&frank team-