Introduction
What makes a playing place?
Inspiring/Informative playing places
Kippen Skate Park
Gorgie/Dalry Community Park
Mugdock Country Park
The Yard
Giffnock Primary School
Garnethill Community Park
Balornock East Youth Centre
The Spire Park
Conclusion
References & Acknowledgements
Acknowledgements
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Where is it? What's it like? What's the story?
Garnethill Community Park

Garnethill Community Park is a pocket park in the centre of the city. It is designed as a multi use space and is well used by the local community, and by local workers and passers by who come to eat lunch and enjoy the green space.

Where is it?
Garnethill is a densely built up area in Glasgow city centre. The park is in the middle of Garnethill minutes away from Sauchiehall Street.
What's it like?
It's a well-used green space on the site of a demolished tenement building. There are seats and rocks, a small amphitheatre, grass, trees and shrubs, a look out pyramid, and streams of water. The area has lighting, which extends its hours of use.
What's the story?

The park was initiated by the Goethe Institute who wanted to contribute to a lasting memento of 1990 Glasgow City of Culture. The District Council were approached, and they offered a number of sites for development as a park.
Dieter Magnus, the artist commissioned to design the park, chose Garnethill. His philosophy for the design was to create a park for use by all ages and excluding competitive elements (including football).

He recognised that Garnethill offered an opportunity to
'restore the balance of nature in the city context and expressing the intimate relationship between art and nature, but one which rekindled appreciation, sharpened the senses, regained sensitivity creating surroundings which stimulated noisy, fun use, enjoyment and participation by the community at large'.

The design for Garnethill was innovative from the start. Diseased Elms, which were being felled across the city were recycled into play sculptures. The workforce from City Council departments, were involved in creating the sculptures under the guidance of Deiter Magnus. The sandstone blocks and granite setts used in the design are all recycled from local demolition. It is very unusual to have running water (artificially pumped into shallow channels) in a modern public park, and to encourage children to play in it by providing stainless steel sluice gates. The water is retained in underground tanks on site, and the whole system is drained and refilled with clean water once a week.
The park is very successful. Two main factors have contributed to this success - the community have been involved in the project (and football has been provided for on a site very nearby) and there is a commitment to maintenance from the City Council who are the guardians of the park.
Some of the elements of the park have had to be changed over time, like the elm sculptures, which became unsafe as the timber deteriorated. The arial runway had to be removed too - it had become popular with people out after dark and the noise that went along with that activity disturbed local residents. These changes are all in the nature of dynamic public open space - it needs to change with time, and how it is used must be reflected in how it is changed.