Inside Storey and there’s a link between play and mental health?
A Place to Grow Architecture should keep youngsters in mind By Ted McIntyre with architect David anand Peterson
it’s 9 a.m. at the 2019 Interior Design Show at Metro Toronto Convention Centre and David Anand Peterson is about to open some eyes from the podium of his “Future of the Family Home” seminar. “We are social animals and how we live is important to our health,” Peterson observes. “As a result, our architecture needs to be shaped by social considerations if we’re to contend with the growing mental health problems seen in today’s children.” As an architectural student in Toronto, Peterson (of the self-named David Peterson Architect firm) was encouraged to study abroad. Time in Holland left him thinking that “housing, even when speculative, can be the best of what we make—more valuable than museums or civic building one-offs. It can best reflect society’s values, since we make so much of it.” And it can change children’s lives. ohba.ca
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OHB: You say the trend in construction in the GTA is not conducive to child development. david peterson: Yes. In
Toronto, 66% of households with children live in buildings that are five storeys and higher, according to the 2011 census. Today’s numbers are certainly higher than that. If we’re going to be successful in making good places to live, our social lives need to give shape to the things we need—not the other way around, where design dictates how we behave. The City of Toronto did a study of families in high-rise conditions entitled “Growing Up Vertical.” When they interviewed parents, the common desire was for more space and storage. When they asked the children, it was a different story. They wanted places to play face-to-face with friends, places to hang out.
There’s a quote in The Guardian from UK researchers petitioning parliament for change in 2016: “If children are to develop the self-regulation and emotional resilience required to thrive in modern technological culture, they need unhurried engagement with caring adults and plenty of selfdirected outdoor play, especially during their early years (0–7). Without action, our children’s physical and mental health will continue to deteriorate.” We’ve made the mistake of thinking, “If we’ve signed kids up for sports activities, their physical needs are being met.” But the research says they’re not really playing if adults are supervising and measuring outcomes. And while many condo playrooms mean well, they aren’t the right solution. A room with brightly coloured toys is not what’s enticing kids to play. There’s also increasing depression among kids aged 12-17. They’re suffering from social isolation, with increased screentime being a big factor. We can’t combat all that, but we can provide safe places to be outdoors. When I look at design elements that determine how frequently kids get together, the first is spacial adjacency: where kids live and where they will play. Can they go in and out easily? In my seminar, I show a circa-1980 apartment tower at Kipling Avenue side by side with Mississauga’s modern Absolute Condo towers. Here’s the trap we fall into: As an adult, we see these buildings as being completely different, but both belong to the same social typography, in that the access to play is exactly the same: a requirement to be accompanied by an adult to a park area up to 36 metres away (not including the distance up and down the elevators). Compare that to the Via Verde project in New York, with landscaped rooftops—trees, shrubs—that terrace down to the ground level. There are vegetable gardens and spaces enclosed by greenery. They provide ideal spots for youngsters to play while adults chat. It’s what a true courtyard should be: ontario home builder Fall 2019
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