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37-731: Kowloon Park is a large public park in Tsim Sha Tsui , Kowloon , Hong Kong . It has an area of 13.3 hectares (33 acres) and is managed by the Leisure and Cultural Services Department . The park was formerly the site of the Whitfield Barracks of the British Army, with a former battery ( Kowloon West II Battery ) in the northwestern part of the park. The Urban Council redeveloped the site into Kowloon Park in 1970. More than 70 buildings were demolished to make way for

74-451: A 10-minute walk , provides multiple benefits. A park is an area of open space provided for recreational use, usually owned and maintained by a local government. Grass is typically kept short to discourage insect pests and to allow for the enjoyment of picnics and sporting activities. Trees are chosen for their beauty and to provide shade , with an increasing emphasis on reducing an urban heat island effect. Some early parks include

111-759: A 100-metre path. Apart from the birds in the Bird Lake and the Aviary, about 100 different wild bird species can be found in the Park. The Conservation Corner, Color Garden, Chinese Garden, Bird Lake and Fitness Trail are ideal spots for wild bird watching. The park houses an indoor sports centre and a large aquatics centre. The pool complex is the most heavily used in Hong Kong, serving over 2000 swimmers daily. It includes four indoor heated pools, including an Olympic sized 50-metre main pool, two 25-metre training pools, and

148-541: A 20-metre diving pool. Outdoors, there are leisure pools of irregular shapes linked together by waterfalls, a circular paddling pool, and sunbathing areas. The swimming complex opened on 12 September 1989 and can accommodate a maximum of 1530 swimmers, and has an annual attendance of more than 1 million visitors. As one of the best equipped swimming pools in Hong Kong, it is the only venue on the Kowloon side suitable for staging major or international swimming events. Events of

185-509: A multisport event in Hong Kong which was first held in 2007 and has taken place every two years since then. All 18 districts of Hong Kong form the participating units for the Games. The Hong Kong Games are held to provide more opportunities for participation, sharing, and cooperation in sports in the community and to promote communication and friendship among the 18 districts. It also allows

222-429: A pair of identical two storied colonial military barrack blocks. The roofs are pitched with Chinese tiles with tar finish. They housed the former Hong Kong Museum of History from 1983 to 1998 before the completion of the present Hong Kong Museum of History at Chatham Road South . An extension block linking the two historical barracks was constructed in the 1980s to provide more space for the museum facilities. It now houses

259-518: A planned 26 acres. It featured a floral clock as well as a Chinese garden set within an English landscape, which a government spokesman called "a reminder of Hongkong's cosmopolitan cultural heritage." However, part of the site was occupied in the construction of an MTR rapid transit line—originally the Kwun Tong line , now the Tsuen Wan line —from 1975 to 1978, and this was cited as a reason for

296-420: Is called "Park Lane Shopper's Boulevard". Owing to the grade change, the roofs of the shops are level with the ground of Kowloon Park, and so the gardens extend onto the building rooftops. An aviary was opened in 1980. From 1987 to 1989, the park was completed at a cost of $ 300 million, which was funded by the then Royal Hong Kong Jockey Club . The park was "doubled" in size, expanding to the north and south, and

333-616: Is sung by Joey Yung with Cheung Ka Seng (張家誠) as the composer and Adrian Chan as the arranger. The Sports Commission is the organiser for the Hong Kong Games, and the Community Sports Committee is the coordinator. The 18 District Councils , the Leisure and Cultural Services Department , the Sports Federation & Olympic Committee of Hong Kong, China and the related sports associations are

370-1165: The Hong Kong Games are also held there regularly. The former Kowloon West II Battery , which was graded as Grade I historic building , was converted into a children's adventure playground in Kowloon Park; it is still recognisable for what it was, however. The gun emplacements have been renovated. Naval guns have been mounted in each emplacement after they were discovered at a construction site at Chatham Road in Tsim Sha Tsui in 1980. 22°18′05″N 114°10′11″E  /  22.30143°N 114.16986°E  / 22.30143; 114.16986 Public park Depending on size, budget, and land features, which varies considerably among individual parks, common features include playgrounds , gardens , hiking, running, fitness trails or paths, bridle paths , sports fields and courts, public restrooms, boat ramps, performance venues, or BBQ and picnic facilities. Park advocates claim that having parks near urban residents, including within

407-702: The Hong Kong Heritage Discovery Centre . Block S4 of former Whitfield Camp is a two-storied colonial military barrack building which is identical to Blocks S61 and S62. It now houses the Health Education Exhibition and Resource Centre . Located near the park's Park Lane Shopper's Boulevard entrance, the Hong Kong Avenue of Comic Stars opened in 2012. It features 24 figurines of local comic characters and 10 bronze handprints of local comic artists along

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444-562: The La Alameda de Hércules , in Seville , a promenaded public mall, urban garden and park built in 1574, within the historic center of Seville. The Városliget ( City Park ) in the City of Pest , what is today Budapest, Hungary , was a city property when afforestation started in the middle of the 18th century, from the 1790s with the clear aim to create a public park. Between 1799 and 1805 it

481-500: The New Territories ; on the other hand, it symbolises the partnership between the organiser, co-ordinator and co-organisers of the Games. The thin lines next to the rings strengthen the feeling of motion and convey the vitality of the 18 districts. The colours red, orange-brown, and blue represent the athlete's energy during indoor and outdoor games, respectively. The theme song of the Hong Kong Games, "Yan Yan Hei Dung" (人人起動)

518-623: The Village of Yorkville Park in Toronto , which won an award from the American Society of Landscape Architects. Parks are sometimes made out of oddly shaped areas of land, much like the vacant lots that often become city neighborhood parks. Linked parks may form a greenbelt . There is a form of an urban park in the UK (officially called a "recreation ground", but commonly called a "rec" by

555-602: The UK, with around 2.6 billion visits to parks each year. Many parks are of cultural and historical interest, with 300 registered by Historic England as of national importance. Most public parks have been provided and run by local authorities over the past hundred and seventy years, but these authorities have no statutory duty to fund or maintain these public parks. In 2016 the Heritage Lottery Fund 's State of UK Public Parks reported that "92 per cent of park managers report their maintenance budgets have reduced in

592-522: The United States and the world, though cow grazing did not end until the 1830s. Around the country, the predecessors to urban parks in the United States were generally rural cemeteries . The cemeteries were intended as civic institutions designed for public use. Before the widespread development of public parks, the rural cemetery provided a place for the general public to enjoy outdoor recreation amidst art and sculpture previously available only for

629-842: The United States are Central Park in New York, Lincoln Park in Chicago, Mission Bay Park in San Diego. In the early 1900s, according to Cranz, U.S. cities built neighborhood parks with swimming pools, playgrounds and civic buildings, with the intention of Americanizing the immigrant residents. In the 1950s, when money became available after World War II , new parks continued to focus on both outdoor and indoor recreation with services, such as sports leagues using their ball fields and gymnasia. These smaller parks were built in residential neighborhoods, and tried to serve all residents with programs for seniors, adults, teens and children. Green space

666-496: The confines of a serpentine carriageway, put in place the essential elements of his much-imitated design for Birkenhead Park in Birkenhead . The latter commenced in 1843 with the help of public finance and deployed the ideas which Paxton had pioneered at Princes Park on a more expansive scale. Frederick Law Olmsted visited Birkenhead Park in 1850 and praised its qualities. Indeed, Paxton is widely credited as having been one of

703-453: The designed landscape as a setting for the suburban domicile (an idea pioneered by John Nash at Regent's Park in London) and re-fashioned it for the provincial town in a most original way. Nash's remodelling of St James's Park from 1827 and the sequence of processional routes he created to link The Mall with Regent's Park completely transformed the appearance of London's West End . With

740-499: The establishment of Princes Park in 1842, Joseph Paxton did something similar for the benefit of a provincial town, albeit one of international stature by virtue of its flourishing mercantile sector. Liverpool had a burgeoning presence in global maritime trade before 1800, and during the Victorian era its wealth rivalled that of London itself. The form and layout of Paxton's ornamental grounds, structured about an informal lake within

777-779: The form of walking, running, horse riding, mountain biking, snowshoeing, or cross-country skiing; or sedentary activity such as observing nature, bird watching, painting, photography, or picnicking. Limiting park or open space use to passive recreation over all or a portion of the park's area eliminates or reduces the burden of managing active recreation facilities and developed infrastructure. Many ski resorts combine active recreation facilities (ski lifts, gondolas, terrain parks, downhill runs, and lodges) with passive recreation facilities (cross-country ski trails). Many smaller neighborhood parks are receiving increased attention and valuation as significant community assets and places of refuge in heavily populated urban areas. Neighborhood groups around

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814-654: The hill of Kowloon Park. The move was first proposed when the Barracks were converted into public open space in 1970, and ignited some controversy. It was opposed by the Urban Council , as well as the Muslim community, whose mosque was close by. The rights for the development of the 5,410 square metre strip were sold in February 1983 to a subsidiary of New World Development for $ 218 million. The commercial development

851-525: The large amount of open space and natural habitat in the former pleasure grounds, they now serve as important wildlife refuges, and often provide the only opportunity for urban residents to hike or picnic in a semi-wild area. However, city managers or politicians can target these parks as sources of free land for other uses. Partly for this reason, some of these large parks have "friends of X park" advisory boards that help protect and maintain their semi-wild nature. There are around estimated 27,000 public parks in

888-567: The need to provide substantial space to congregate, typically involves intensive management, maintenance, and high costs. Passive recreation, also called "low-intensity recreation" is that which emphasizes the open-space aspect of a park and allows for the preservation of natural habitat. It usually involves a low level of development, such as rustic picnic areas, benches, and trails. Passive recreation typically requires little management and can be provided at very low costs. Some open space managers provide nothing other than trails for physical activity in

925-404: The park was built was purchased by Richard Vaughan Yates, an iron merchant and philanthropist, in 1841 for £50,000. The creation of Princes Park showed great foresight and introduced a number of highly influential ideas. First and foremost was the provision of open space for the benefit of townspeople and local residents within an area that was being rapidly built up. Secondly it took the concept of

962-695: The park. The first stage of the park was officially opened on 24 June 1970 by the then governor of Hong Kong , Sir David Trench . The opening was celebrated by a lion dance as well as a folk dance by students of the Tai Hang Tung Primary School PM Session. Music was provided by the band of the First Battalion, the Royal Welsh Fusiliers . Sir David unveiled a commemorative plaque and declared Kowloon Park open. The first phase comprised 18 acres out of

999-420: The past three years and 95 per cent expect their funding will continue to reduce". Parks can be divided into active and passive recreation areas. Active recreation is that which has an urban character and requires intensive development. It often involves cooperative or team activity, including playgrounds , ball fields, swimming pools, gymnasiums, and skateparks . Active recreation such as team sports, due to

1036-457: The principal influences on Olmsted and Calvert's design for New York's Central Park of 1857. Another early public park, the Peel Park, Salford , England, opened on 22 August 1846. Boston Common was purchased for public use grazing cows and as a military parade ground and dump in 1634. It first started to get recreational elements in 1728, arguably making it the first municipal park in

1073-457: The public.) and some EU states that have mostly recreation grounds for kids to play within a park, but may also have a duck pond, large grassy zones not meant exclusively for sports, many trees, and several bushy places. When it occurs as a separate facility on its own, without any parkland, at a street corner or by a shop, the play facility is called a playground . Hong Kong Games The Hong Kong Games (HKG, Chinese : 全港運動會 ) are

1110-432: The relevant units to strengthen the cohesion of the community. Moreover, it promotes the idea of "sports for all" in society in order to raise the standard of sports in Hong Kong. The emblem of the Games is composed of three rings resembling the number "18", which symbolises the 18 participating districts in the Hong Kong Games. In addition, it also represents the three regions of Hong Kong: Hong Kong Island , Kowloon and

1147-482: The slow progress in developing the remaining three stages of the park for recreational use. The Urban Council also placed some of the blame on the construction of Kowloon Park Drive, which cut through a corner of the park at the insistence of the government. The Government was criticised when the Executive Council approved plans in 1982 for a strip of retail premises fronting Nathan Road to be carved into

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1184-580: The sports centre and swimming pool complex was built. There is a tree walk located next to the Rose Garden. There are also some stone wall trees growing on the walls adjacent to aviary pond in Kowloon Park. One preserved historic barrack, Block S58, is used as a godown of Hong Kong Museum of History . Three other preserved buildings of the former barracks are used as museums: Blocks S61 and S62 of former Whitfield Camp are "Grade III historical buildings" which were constructed in circa 1910. They are

1221-490: The wealthy. In The Politics of Park Design: A History of Urban Parks in America, (Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press, 1982), Professor Galen Cranz identifies four phases of park design in the U.S. In the late 19th century, city governments purchased large tracts of land on the outskirts of cities to form "pleasure grounds": semi-open, charmingly landscaped areas whose primary purpose was to allow city residents, especially

1258-488: The workers, to relax in nature. As time passed and the urban area grew around the parks, land in these parks was used for other purposes, such as zoos, golf courses and museums. These parks continue to draw visitors from around the region and are considered regional parks , because they require a higher level of management than smaller local parks. According to the Trust for Public Land , the three most visited municipal parks in

1295-531: The world are joining together to support local parks that have suffered from urban decay and government neglect. A linear park is a park that has a much greater length than width. A typical example of a linear park is a section of a former railway that has been converted into a park called a rail trail or greenway (i.e. the tracks removed, vegetation allowed to grow back). Some examples of linear parks in North America include New York's High Line and

1332-530: Was of secondary importance. As urban land prices climbed, new urban parks in the 1960s and after have been mainly pocket parks . One example of a pocket park is Chess Park in Glendale, California. The American Society of Landscape Architects gave this park a General Design Award of Honor in 2006. These small parks provide greenery, a place to sit outdoors, and often a playground for children. All four types of park continue to exist in urban areas. Because of

1369-547: Was rented out to the Batthyány family to carry out such a project but the city had eventually taken back control and in 1813 announced a design competition to finally finish the park; works started in 1816. An early purpose-built public park, although financed privately, was Princes Park in the Liverpool suburb of Toxteth . This was laid out to the designs of Joseph Paxton from 1842 and opened in 1843. The land on which

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