Fuelling laughter

City Centre

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This article was published 06/11/2024 (343 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It’s mid-afternoon at Central Park, and the playground is filled with laughter.

Children are bustling from the slide to the see-saw — followed closely by concerned parents — pushing each other on swings, balancing on monkey bars, and screaming loud enough to drown out any conversation happening nearby. It’s a near-perfect scene on an otherwise grey autumn day — and a prize after the months of hard work to get to this point.

On Oct. 29, the Mosaic Newcomer Family Resource Network, accompanied by the Winnipeg Arts Council and a crowd of supporters, celebrated the grand re-opening of the playground at Central Park, which is located at 400 Cumberland Ave. and used on a daily basis by local families, as well as children attending Knox Day Nursery, located just next door.

The project was organized by the MNFRN, with support from the City of Winnipeg and West End Business Improvement Zone, among other organizations, and was funded by Prairies Economic Development Canada and the Canada Community Revitalization Fund.

The play area has been given a brand-new play structure, which gives kids a new double slide, climbing wall, springers, and four swings. The new and pre-existing playgrounds were also upgraded to include a rubber ground surface, which is gentler on young skin.

The new park was also blessed — in Cree — by local elder and minister Connie Budd, a residential school survivor who grew up in Norway House First Nation Reserve. Budd has three children, 20 grandchildren and 21 great-grandchildren.

“This playground and others like it are extremely important to Connie’s family and other families like it,” said Val Cavers, executive director of MNFRN. She said the newly refurbished playground spreads “respect and joy for the children — and for everyone, as I heard there have been numerous adults playing on the swings.”

Central Park is one of the oldest parks in Winnipeg. It originally opened in 1894, but has been through a number of structural changes in the 130 years since. The park as it exists today was officially re-opened in 2012, and has since become a “vibrant urban park” and gathering place, according to the Winnipeg Architecture Foundation.

It serves as an important community space for newcomer immigrant parents and their young children, who live and attend school in the downtown area.

“I love Central Park,” said Union Station MLA Uzoma Asagwara, who is also deputy premier and minister of health, seniors and long-term care. “This is my favourite park in the whole neighbourhood … All of Manitoba is represented right here. And having an inclusive playground … we know what this means to Central Park and the neighbourhood.”

“This is what energizes the community in the best way,” Asagwara added, acknowledging the noise of kids playing nearby. “This is what we want to be hearing on a daily basis.”

The playground’s re-opening was accompanied by the installation of 12 new banners by local artist Bîstyek, who “jumped on” the opportunity to create artwork for the space at the behest of the WAC.

Each banner depicts a different element of the area — representing everything from the multiculturalism of the inner city to the beautiful game played by kids on the park’s soccer field. The banners have been hung along Edmonton Street and Cumberland Avenue.

“The inspiration came from the neighbourhood itself,” said Bîstyek, who was born in Syria. “You know, the first thing that I did was really focus on reflecting the neighbourhoods and representing it in the right way. It’s a very vibrant and colorful neighbourhood, and diverse, and so that was my focus.”

“Anyone from any neighbourhood can relate to it. Each banner kind of represents a community from Central Park,” he said.

Bîstyek is a multi-media artist who focuses primarily on identity and self-exploration. His next exhibition, Inside Out, will be on display from Nov. 22 to Dec. 20 at the Katie + Gunner Gallery (102-141 Bannatyne Ave.).

“Seeing the 12 pieces being up here … I’m super-honoured, excited and happy,” he said. “I’m leaving my mark on it (Central Park) today.”