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This morning I had an idea (after seeing Jack Maguire's post with the link to the outdoor chess park in Turkey). So I thought that this may be a good way to introduce a new location for outdoor chess tables in Toronto & elsewhere. Hence my letter to parks@toronto.ca
parks@toronto.ca
Dear Sir,
There has been a trend in recent years, both in Canada and abroad in installing permanent stone chess tables in parks. They almost always draw regular users who benifit from the fresh air and social interaction.
In Toronto, two places come to mind - High Park and the park at Church & Queen. But there are others -which only draw people to sit for lunch or for pigeons to roost.
Why not install chess tables where people already come to play the game? If there are already two or three stone tables which serve for chess games, then install two or three more. This brings to mind the chess gatherings at Yonge & Gould where several dozen chess players met every day until the tables were removed a few years ago. The thinking may have been that chess players would use the tables in various locations around the downtown area to meet and play. But instead one location won out (Queen & Church). Chess players will go to a location every day when they know there will be others there.
So please build on what you already have - and don't try to disperse the activity all around the city. In New York, in San Francisco and other cities, there is one main focused chess centre where outdoor chess games are played every day.
In order to start a new location for stone chess tables and daily activity, it would take a concerted chess program such as the one next to the Kitchener city hall >>>>>
http://www.kwchessclub.com/outdoor.html
Such a program might work at Queens Park, for example, but it might need something extra to kick start it - for example, a giant chess board is always popular with the kids, as may be seen at this location >>>>
http://www.dailysabah.com/life/2016/...pens-in-yalova
Thanks,
Vlad Dobrich
I also added a note that, in case I should have sent the email elsewhere, to please forward the email to wherever.
No doubt such a program would need a full time chess player to oversee it (such as Hans Jung does in Kitchener) - so employment for one chess player, perhaps. :)
parks@toronto.ca
Dear Sir,
There has been a trend in recent years, both in Canada and abroad in installing permanent stone chess tables in parks. They almost always draw regular users who benifit from the fresh air and social interaction.
In Toronto, two places come to mind - High Park and the park at Church & Queen. But there are others -which only draw people to sit for lunch or for pigeons to roost.
Why not install chess tables where people already come to play the game? If there are already two or three stone tables which serve for chess games, then install two or three more. This brings to mind the chess gatherings at Yonge & Gould where several dozen chess players met every day until the tables were removed a few years ago. The thinking may have been that chess players would use the tables in various locations around the downtown area to meet and play. But instead one location won out (Queen & Church). Chess players will go to a location every day when they know there will be others there.
So please build on what you already have - and don't try to disperse the activity all around the city. In New York, in San Francisco and other cities, there is one main focused chess centre where outdoor chess games are played every day.
In order to start a new location for stone chess tables and daily activity, it would take a concerted chess program such as the one next to the Kitchener city hall >>>>>
http://www.kwchessclub.com/outdoor.html
Such a program might work at Queens Park, for example, but it might need something extra to kick start it - for example, a giant chess board is always popular with the kids, as may be seen at this location >>>>
http://www.dailysabah.com/life/2016/...pens-in-yalova
Thanks,
Vlad Dobrich
I also added a note that, in case I should have sent the email elsewhere, to please forward the email to wherever.
No doubt such a program would need a full time chess player to oversee it (such as Hans Jung does in Kitchener) - so employment for one chess player, perhaps. :)
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