Barb Scott Park opens with tributes to its namesake

Noon on June 13 officially marked the opening of the Beltline’s newest greenspace, Barb Scott Park, located on 12th Avenue and 9 Street S.W. Not even the rain kept the nearly 200 community members away from attending the opening and witnessing the dedication to the long-serving late Alderman whom the park is named after.

Beltline Communities President Rob Taylor said the park’s design was community-driven from the beginning, and was sketched out on a napkin by a local group working with their alderman. Nearly a decade later, the community's dream has finally come to fruition.

Project manager for the park development Michelle Reid said, “The community input was essential for the park development, and their aspects were integrated in to the final design of green space; which is ultimately very flexible for citizens.”

Mayor Naheed Nenshi, Councillor Evan Woolley, Parks Director Anne Charlton, and Rob Taylor officially declared Barb Scott Park open with a simple ribbon cutting ceremony and a selfie in front of the park's anchor attraction, an interactive public art sculpture dubbed, "Chinook Arc."

Later that evening, a community celebration for the new park and the official unveiling of Chinook Arc took place from 8-11 p.m.

The event included a number of activities including a foosball and ping pong table, pedal powered DJ booth and bubble machines. Artists from Creative Machines, the creators of Chinook Arc, shared their story about the sculpture, explaining how it interacts with movement and colours.

Local jazz musicians, the Lorna MacLachlan Quintet, played a special musical composition created for the event. This was followed by a lantern parade.

For more photos, see our photo album on Flickr. Follow the Chinook Arc on Twitter @Chinook_Arc and post your own selfie with the sculpture using the hashtag #chinookarc or by @ mentioning the sculpture on Twitter or Instagram.