mellastmansquare

Research Statement: The location and design of a public square can affect how the space will be used and whether it is effectively used by the public.
 * Mel Lastman Square**

Located amongst the hustle and bustle of Yonge St., Mel Lastman Square exists as a beautiful space intended for community events. North York is a multicultural area, filled with shopping malls, theatres, restaurants, banks, supermarkets, a centre for performing arts, a civic centre and a central library. The public space hosts a few community events on special occasions such as Canada Day and other smaller cultural festivals, but during most of the year, this space is quiet and unused. It appears Mel Lastman Square is only put to use when certain events are held and organized by different groups, but the general public makes little contribution to activating the space. I'd like to explore the uses of public spaces, the intent during urban planning for city squares like this one, and how this particular space can be more effectively used. The two areas I plan to look at to begin my investigation are the types of people that have access to the place and how the people can make the space by the activities they do, as well as the physical design of the space and how the design can affect the opportunities for interaction within the square.

Questions: What kind of people live or work in that area, and what kind of uses will they have for this space? What can be done to promote activities in a public square, when it is surrounded by so many distractions of the city? While there are many small local and cultural events that are held, many of these are unknown and not promoted enough. What sort of activities can encourage normal use, not necessarily celebration or specifically promoted towards one cultural group? How can the design of the space be more inviting for people walking by? How does Mel Lastman Square compare to other public squares, such as Nathan Phillips Square? Which is better used, and why? Is it the design of the space, the location or the people that visit it?

First draft of concept map: Concept map to help visualize research area. From this concept map, I've been able to identify that the sorts of activities benches allow do not promote communal activities. Having a library and many restaurants near the square also means there are indoor alternatives to using the square in the winter.

Photos added to Flickr: media type="flickr" key="13921272@N05" ARG0="&lang=en-us&format=rss_200" width="500" height="500"

__Observations from field research:__ Field research proved that Mel Lastman Square actually can be a effectively used public space. I coincidentally happened to go on the day of a Farmer's Market event where there were a couple of stalls selling Ontario-produced vegetables and fruit. As it was lunch time, some business people also took their lunches in the designated seating areas within the space. There was more than enough seats for people, as many benches and tables bordered the main pool area were unused. There was little interaction between the people there; many sat on their own with packed lunches or food from the hot dog vendor or ice cream truck parked outside. There was a Starbucks located on the corner of the square, but the customers of Starbucks did not bring their coffee out into the square. People within the space were either alone, or in groups no larger than three. Perhaps to create an atmosphere for the Farmer's Market, two musicians performed publicly at the entrance of the square to attract attention of the people walking by. Some Chinese-speaking ladies also took the opportunity to hand out promotional brochures to customers of the market stalls. At 1pm, the square seemed to be the busiest with many people walking by, and some entering for lunch. The field researched proved that I needed to further explore the use of this space, by visiting on a day when an event wasn't planned to see the regular usage of Mel Lastman Square. The visit seemed to correct assumptions that I had about the space being left idle, but further investigation will be needed to confirm this.

__Secondary research on Mel Lastman Square__ > Mel Lastman Square recently finished construction and open again for Summer and Fall 2007. > Farmer's market - every Thursday 10am-2pm > Hispanic fiesta - Hispanic performers from over 20 different countries, www.hispanicfiesta.com > Korean Harvest Festival - food from korean community sold at the square > (I originally wanted to call to know what sorts of public art were installed within the square but the hotline only had recorded messages and announcements, and there was no one I could speak to.)
 * 1) Public outdoor art installed in Mel Lastman Square - “The Gateway Marker”, 1995, by Ron & Lynda Baird. This work was created for Yonge Street’s Bicentennial and gives Mel Lastman Square and North York Civic Centre a permanent address on Yonge Street. [__[|Source]]__
 * 2) Notes from phonecall to MLS hotline (416-395-7582):
 * 1) Official site from Toronto.com for Mel Lastman Square with event listings: [[|Source]]
 * 2) Details of how Mel Lastman Square was used for WinterFest 2003: [[|Source]]
 * 3) Official site from Toronto.com for Farmer's Market: [[|Source]]

Possible directions of research now: How is public art installed into the square to enhance the experience within the space? Do people notice it? Does it even affect their interaction? Farmer's market - how does this encourage culture in the area? How does this contribute to the local economy? Health?