HOW HAS THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC CHANGEd HOW PEOPLE USE AND VALUE PARKLAND?
Project Description: The Landscape Architectural Services team leads parkland, trails, and open space development for the City of Hamilton. We advocate for parkland and open space, and work with planning staff to acquire parkland in suitable locations to maximize the many benefits of greenspace for the public. The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way that people use parks, trails, and open spaces in our City and we want to better understand the changes that have taken place.
We are particularly interested in research projects that help us to answer some or all of the following questions:
1. How has usage of parkland and open space changed before, during and after the COVID-19 emergency? How have perceptions changed?
2. Are there regional or spatial differences? Do people with less access to private open spaces (i.e backyards) value the public ones more after COVID-19?
3. Are there correlations with mental health, physical health, weight gain, and other factors related to the lockdown versus access to local open spaces and parks? This project will help staff better understand the use, perception, and value of parks, as well as inform the placement of open spaces across the city in the context of a pandemic.
City Staff: Cynthia Graham, Manager, Landscape Architectural Services, Public Works
Deliverables: Primary Research (i.e. conducting surveys and/or collecting data)
Project Start Date/ Availability: Fall 2020 (September-December)
Location: City-Wide
City wide City Strategy Priority: Healthy and Safe Communities, Clean and Green, Build Environment and Infrastructure.