Halswell Domain

Halswell Domain
View from the Model Engineers' site in the Halswell Domain

Sunday, June 12, 2016

The skate park debate: Finding Common Ground

For those who don't know me, I've been working on a voluntary basis in Halswell for the last 7 years to build more connections between people in our community and to help people feel more connected here - to each other and to the things that go on.

Imagine my discomfort, then as I watch and participate in the debates around a venue for a youth facility and what it turn us into warring factions!

I was deeply upset at the meeting that the CCC ran at Halswell School to discuss this because of the way we were all steered away from talking about what clearly matters very deeply to us.  The meeting felt like it turned into an us versus them competiton.   It is not!  And it made me very sad that lovely people were essentially working very hard to dismiss each other.  This process has resulted in us missing the point by focusing our attention on a skate park.  Incidentally, we are also missing an opportunity to deepen our sense of community and with it to feel that we are ALL safe and supported as part of this community.

I work to build community because I see that everyone who lives here really matters and that we all do better if we look after each other.  Based on my own experience, and having studied the experiences of others, I know that we in Halswell are more than resourceful enough to deal with our differences, and meet each other's needs at the same time if we choose to work together.    I"m not arguing that it is easy and I am sure that we will have to work to discuss our disagreements.  I also know that we are stronger, safer and happier when we work together than when we split apart and lose sight of our common humanity and our common ground. 

My question to everyone is how can we meet the needs of all who live here?
  • How can we meet the needs of our young people for a safe place to meet  and spend time with their friends, to play and build social skills together with other kids, and to have a safe place to develop and practice physical skills?  
  • How can we meet the needs of local residents to feel safe and secure in their own homes?  
  • How do we convince each other that we do in fact care for the wellbeing of all those we live near?   
At the moment I think that we are missing important understanding by focusing our attention on trying to influence the Community Board, rather than spending time talking to each other across the gap that seems to have opened up about how the needs of everyone can be met. This is not all our fault, but it IS for us to do something about.

Dismissing the needs of any group in this community is not, and never will be, the way through this.




4 comments:

  1. i believe that the skate park belongs in Halswell domain park. it's right in the middle of Halswell so is equally accessible for all who want to use it. As for some of the nimbys that were found at the community meeting last week, I think they would not be in any way adversely affected by the skate park. if the park is in halswell domain, and is WELL LIT, then I have no doubts that people will be able to enjoy the park.

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  2. This is really a nice blog in you discuss about some good points, thanks for sharing and keep sharing.

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  3. I also like the Halswell Domain as a location for the skate park. When my children were young we got a lot of pleasure from skate parks and developed bikeing and skating skills.
    BUT there problems associated with skate parks. Washington Ave park is associated with teens hanging out unsupervised,graffiti, drugs and frequent fights. This appears to be a common problem with skate parks. My teens would not like such a park close to houses. fires being lit in local play grounds attest to the nuisance element that lives among us.
    Halswell Quarry has a gate that gets locked at night. Perhaps the skate could be lockable and be part of the council lock-up round.

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