Friday, December 18, 2015

Borrowing Fishing Tackle is Easy as Borrowing a Book!

 


Borrowing Fishing Tackle is Easy as Borrowing a Book!
Ryerson Station Park is pleased to announce that it is an official Fishing Tackle Loaner Site. Visitors of the park can come to the park office 7 days a week from 8:00 am to 2:00 pm Memorial Day through Labor Day and borrow rods, reels and tackle box full of hooks and other tackle free of charge. Before Memorial Day and after Labor Day, fishing equipment will be available Monday-Friday 8:00 a.m.- 2:00 p.m. If you plan on borrowing the equipment on the weekend, please call the park office and make arrangements. Equipment must be returned by 4:00 P.M, unless prior arrangements are made. This equipment is borrowed in much the same way books are borrowed from a library. Those wanting to borrow gear complete a form and the loan is made. At the end of the loan period the equipment is returned to the site.

All borrowers are required to follow all fishing regulations and licensing requirements.

This program is a partnership between the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission, the American Sportfishing Association, and the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.link




 -About 50 parks in North Carolina lend fishing tackle under the states Tackler Loan Program. The  N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission pays 75% of the cost of the gear. Someone got 50 parks in North Carolina  to lend fishing gear.  Great!. If you can loan fishing gear why can't you loan volleyballs or hula hoops?  I gave a call to one of the parks  who got the gear and asked if you can lend fishing gear any reason you can't lend other sports equipment. Answer was "I don't think so".



  -Can't afford to staff a unstaffed  park full time? How about part time. Part time employees can be hired to work 1 or 2  weekend day to man Play Libraries at unstaffed parks.







Central Park visitors can borrow North Meadow Recreation Center kits that include various sporting goods, such as frisbees, jump ropes, balls, bats, and hula-hoops. Basketballs, to be used at the Center's basketball courts, are available upon showing a photo id.

 

 

Equipment Loan Program

The Municipal Recreation & Parks Department has a variety of sport and recreation equipment that can be borrowed on a sign in/out basis.

Equipment available for loan:

  • Snowshoes
  • Nordic Walking Poles
  • Indoor Curling Kit
  • Ground hockey gear (sticks, helmets, goalie gear)
  • Hockey skates
  • Basketballs
  • Baseball equipment
  • Outdoor games (oversized chess game, croquet, bean bag toss)
  • If there is a piece of equipment that you have in mind but is not our list please call ext. 229. We may have it or we may be able to direct you to someone who does.   link



giant chess

 

 

Estell Manor Park

 

 Bicycle and Other Equipment Lending Program- During Nature Center hours, visitors to Estell Manor may borrow bikes and helmets, softball equipment, volleyballs, frisbees, jump ropes, horseshoes and soccer balls. An adult with a driver's license must accompany children borrowing equipment. Free! Children (under 14 years of age) riding bikes, roller blades or skates are required to wear helmets as per NJ State Law.  link




ROXBORO, N.C. (May 17, 2011) – Fishing on Mayo Lake has become more accessible, thanks in part to a cooperative effort between the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission and Person County Recreation Arts and Parks, who are providing free loaner adaptive fishing gear to physically challenged anglers.
The adaptive fishing gear, which can be borrowed from the Mayo Park office, is available free of charge through the Wildlife Commission’s Tackle Loaner Program.  Park staff has electric reels, pole harnesses, easy-cast fishing poles and easy-grip gloves available to loan to anglers who have limited hand, arm and upper body movement.
“This adaptive fishing gear gives fishermen the ability to cast and reel in fish with minimum effort,” said Jeremy Royster, Mayo Park Ranger. “Anglers can register at the park office to join the program and receive a tackle loaner card that lets them borrow free loaner tackle at Mayo Park, as well as other participating tackle loaner sites across the state.
“We’re fortunate that the Commission is offering this adaptive fishing gear through the Tackle Loaner Program because it allows Mayo Park to expand outdoor opportunities for persons with physical limitations.”
 The adaptive fishing gear is funded through a 75-25 percent cost-share venture between the Commission and the parks department and is available on a first-come-first-serve basis through the Commission’s Tackle Loaner Program, which loans rods and reels just as a library loans books. Anglers register to receive a tackle loaner ID card that lets them check out a rod and reel for free for the day. While the program is geared toward children under 16, anyone interested in fishing can participate.
 link

Community Park

Located in the heart of Poway, Community Park is one of our most active parks! Ride the bowl at the Skate Park, hit a home run in the ball fields, swing at Adventure Playground, shout bingo at the Senior Center, run with your dog at Dog Park, or borrow fun recreational equipment while picnicking. link
Kids In Motion NYC


 Fairlawn

 This year’s Summer Park Program special events included cookouts with the park staff, movie day at the Community Center, National Mustard Day event, Family Fun Night and Bubble Day. We had great attendance at our daily park activities which include borrowing equipment (tennis
racquets, balls, hula hoops, games, etc.), daily sports and games at the parks and participating in craft time with the staff.  link


Don’t let a lack of gear stop you! Try out our equipment for free. Our Outdoor Gear Bank has backpacks, tents, sleeping pads, trekking poles, and much more to borrow for free! link



 Murray Avenue Bridge Area - designed for fun, interactive games like shuffleboard, giant checkers, and hopscotch. To borrow equipment for these games, you must supply your Town of Mamaroneck Recreation Department ID Card or driver's license   link


Churchill Park , Ct
The Parks and Recreation Department has three bags of sports equipment available for residents to borrow throughout the Spring and Summer months.  Equipment bags are available on a first-come, first-served basis.  Equipment bags are available for loan on weekends until Columbus Day.  For the Sports Equipment Reservation Form, which has a list of bag contents and reservation policies, please click here




Stocking a Loose Park


To stock it's Library of Thjings, the Sacramento Public Livbrary surveyed the community...


How rge Sacramento Public Library Designs their Library of th
 The question of what exactly will be available for lending and borrowing will depend on what the community suggests. Community members have been able submit their ideas through the library’s website and will be able to continue to do so through next week. Once ideas have been submitted, they will appear as comments on the page. The most popular objects will be purchased. (Within reason, of course; the library has allotted a budget of $3,900.) So far, the two most popular ideas, tied at 150 votes each, have been a sewing machine and video games—clearly, a variety of demographics are being served here. In response, the library has already bought six sewing machines and expects to begin circulating them by mid-February" - Sacramento Public  Library  of Things





Thoughts on a Loose Park Starter Architecture

Loose parts
Lego
Bilbo
Kalidascope
3D Viewmaster
Virtual reality headset
Rubicks Cube
Jump rope
hula hoop
chess/checkers  set
Dominoes
Kubb
Nok Hockey
Jigsaw puzzles
chalk
Lawn bowling
scrabble and other board game
Frisbee
Puppets
Dolls
Toys
Bean Bags
Hackey Sack
audible ball
giant balls
portable dvd player
art supplies
socccer ball
basketball
lawn twister
portable chairs
bacgammon

tablet computers
 
Electronic keyboard
Squeeze Balls
Power Bands
Ukelele
Giant Games  chess, scrabble etc)
Simpsons Chess
Parachute
Mini Ping Pong
Binoculars
Telescope
Horse shoes
Larger Items
 Corn hole
swing seats
Guitar
Bat, ball and catchers mitt
Table and Chairs /Picnic table
little free library filled with children's books and magazines
 ping pong table
Large lawn objects


Kids Basketball





 The above list does not meet everyone's needs. . No problem. The great thing about  Loose Parks is they are self organizing systems that  will continue to  "learn and grow" through the requests of users

                                                   



Thursday, December 17, 2015

Chelsea Loose Parks


. As a study by the RAND Corp said about LA's parks, "Supervisied activities draw more people to the park"


A staffed Play Library  in a park is the best. But as I have been told a City Parks Department may not be able to afford full time staff for a Loose Park Play Library. But what about staff one day a week. This would allow one staff member to staff multiple locations. Once  a presence is created  one day a week ask for people to volunteer a few hours a week to extend the time it is open.

New York's Jefferson Market Garden is staffed by over 60 volunteers. What these volunteers do is open the gates to the garden and greet people who come in to it. If people are willing to volunteer to do this, why not look for volunteer to lend equipment at a Loose Park Play Library?

-If each park in a neighborhood is staffed just one day a week,  people in the community will have access to a Loose Park 7 days a week. On one day of the week the park might be really close by to where you live( I live near 3) , on the other 6 days, you have to walk travel a bit to get to your areas's Loose Parks.


This is the Chelsea section of Manhattan. There are 8 parks in this neighborhood:
-1 Chelsea Waterside Park
2-Chelsea Park
3-Penn Station South Playground
4 20th Street Park
5-Getrude Kelly Playground
6-14th Street Park
7-High Line
8-Hudson River Park

Currently the parks in this neighborhood subtly exclude use by certain groups.  For example Penn Station South Playground has basketball courts, a volleyball court (with no net)  benches, chess tables, a Jungle Gym, and several sidewalk games for kids.   It is inclusive for people who want these features,   It subtly excludes use by  ping pong players,   the disabled who are offered no equipment of interest(wheel chair swings, audible balls etc) ,,  youth who would like to play  foosball, volleyball. etc, etc etc  Can members of  these groups  still go to Penn Station South Playground? Yes, but many do not bother as the park does not offer  recreation opportunities that interested them.

Adding a staffed Play Library 1 day a week to these locations would give people in the neighborhood access to activities that interested them.



A couple yeara ago I was in NYC's Bryant Park at the table games area, a fellow was playing a game with the Park Ranger. I talked to the guy, he lived in the Bronx, and came all the way to Bryant Park, because there was no staffed Table Games  play area in the Bronx.


Tuesday, December 15, 2015

More Loose Park Possibilities

The examples I gave for Loose Parks used Parks Department Parks and Library Lawns. Here are several other ways to create a Loose Park  near a library.


Schoolyard

Often schoolyars are open after school hours to the public. A schoolyard near a Play Library can become a Loose Park

In the upper left  corner is a Library, in the Lower right a schoolyard playground. By adding a Play Library to the library the playground becomes a loose park. (BTW the red dot is where I used to live. in those days NYC had staffed playgrounds where you could borrow play equipment , but that playground was over  1/2 mile away, )

 

Community Garden


The New York Restoration Projects El Catano Community Garden(below) at 171 East 110th Street,  is directly across from the Aguilar Library( 174 East 110th St)





Play Streets

-Create a Play Street Loose Park

Close down a street near a library and turn it into a Playstreet Loose Park

link





You don't need to take a whole street to create a playstreet near a library.


-Create a Play Parklet Loose Park
The parklet movement has transformed parking spots into passive recreation parks such as  this one in San Francisco that takes up the space of  3 cars and allows kids to play.Other parklets allow adults to play.





This space adjacent to Manhattans Science, Industry and Business  Library(33rd St at Madison-5th Ave)  is a block long dead street.
By removing parking and  lending recreation equipment, it can become a Loose Park . There is precedence for this...


 on 32nd street at 7th Avwenue in Manhattan     another street was turned into a block long  Fixed Park

Street Play England




Privately  Owned Public Space
A new library is being built on the site of the old Donnell library. in Manhattan It is about 150 feet away from the 31 West 52nd Street Privately owned public space







Unstaffed Play Library


 The Children's Magical Garden is a key access community garden
 


Hula hoops are available in it, for those who have key access. The community garden itself in this case acts as the Play Library
 


At the New York Restoration Projects Target Brooklyn Garden a outdoor reading room filled with children's books and magazines for adults (bottom left) , transformed the spot into a Loose Park for readers.



Sunday, December 6, 2015

Involvement and Participation


Involvement and Participation
The concept of involvement and participation underlies this whole report. It seems central to the comments of all our consultants. Rand has summarized the point when he says, "Designed environments which are thought out. formalized,and complete are usually lifeless' and unapproachable because (a) they do not invite interaction and modification to suit immediate
human needs; (b) they are unable to grow, develop and become extended through human use. Human habitation merely fulfills (for better or far worse)
the designer's conception of their potential meaning rather than leading to the discoveryof new functions and new forms of interaction. Oddly enough [he goes on to say] many environsents which 'work' well for people meet few if any, aesthetic criteria ordinarily employed  by designers." From New York, New York (1968) by Lawrence Halpern and Associates.