I have been stuck at home all week – fighting off what I hope will be the first and only cold of the fall season.  I have been catching up on bad tv and blog reading and one of the events that has been receiving much attention in the blogosphere and beyond – it was actually a friend who I saw on the bus last week that first reminded me about Park(ing) Day.

Park(ing) Day is an annual event that is celebrate here in Pittsburgh and other cities around the globe (New York, London, Brisbane, Los Angeles) – where parking spaces are turned into mini parks for the day. Park(ing) day is a chance to see some creative ideas around parks and to think about how we use our public spaces.

Just a few years ago – Oakland had a large, what I thought at the time was – lovely and convenient parking lot right next to the library, museum and the Cathedral of Learning.  But the Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy had bigger ideas and the big parking lot has been replaced with Schenley Plaza – which is much more lovely than a parking lot.  It is great to see the plaza and the tent filled with people enjoying the space on sunny afternoons.  Schenley Plaza is just one example of how we can start to re-imagine our public spaces.  Continue reading →