Archive for the ‘Green Living’ Category

Spruce Grove’s Jubilee Park

Wednesday, August 31st, 2011

Something very special is being created on the east side of Spruce Grove.  You may not have heard about it because it’s not quite finished, and the City of Spruce Grove isn’t promoting it yet, but Jubilee Park in Spruce Grove is now open for public use and well worth a visit.

Spruce Grove's Jubilee Park | Spruce Grove Stony Plain Parkland County Real Estate | Barry TwynamIf you are a citizen of Spruce Grove, Stony Plain, or Parkland County, you know that one of the things that makes Spruce Grove so memorable and family-friendly is the large number of neighborhood parks and playgrounds, sports parks and facilities (such as the Fuhr Sports Park west of the Tri-Leisure Centre and the Henry Singer ball park south of the railroad tracks), and the gem running right through the centre of town in the form of ParticiPark, that huge stand of trees and nature trails.  But all of these are about to look almost ordinary compared to what will be officially open to the public in 2012. 

Jubilee Park is a 60-acre parcel of land located at 510 Grove Drive, east of Spruce Village.  This land is being transformed into a wonderland of urban recreational and cultural opportunities.  The City of Spruce Grove website  says that the park “will offer the community the best passive and unstructured recreational opportunities in the city.  From paved walking and bike trails, to picnic areas, an open air performance area, sliding hill and playground, Jubilee Park will provide families with a multitude of outdoor pleasures.”

Features of the park, most of which are now in place, include

  • Picnic areas
  • Picnic shelter
  • Plaza
  • Open games area
  • Fire pit
  • Multi-purpose paved walking and biking trails
  • Play structure and “tot lot”
  • Disk golf
  • Recreational skating
  • Sliding and tobogganing hill
  • Multi-purpose building
  • Amphitheatre and open air performance area
  • Formal gardens
  • Wetlands
  • Natural woodlands
  • Paved parking

See the map of the proposed development. 

The City of Spruce Grove suggests several benefits of this park:

  • Community gathering place
  • Promotes social well-being and health
  • Family-oriented spaces
  • Connects to Heritage Grove trail system
  • Natural interpretive education opportunities
  • Preserves natural woodlands

Spruce Grove has not had a place for the community to gather in large numbers for special events, especially those focused on culture.  The sports fields at Spruce Grove Composite High School have been the venue for Canada Day celebrations for a few years, but without adequate amenities such as parking, seating and the like.  Imagine the uses of this incredible new facility.  Imagine a place for open air summer concerts and other performances, winter and summer games, community picnics and celebrations, festivals to rival those of neighboring communities, family play, get-togethers and reunions, wedding photos, block parties, and just hanging out and enjoying nature with your family and neighbors…. 

From a real estate perspective, this park is very good news for current and future residents of the nearby neighborhoods of Spruce Village and Grove Meadows.  Green space of any type tends to increase the desirability and perhaps value of properties located in the vicinity.  Expect only positive outcomes from this wonderful new facility!

Your comments and questions are always welcome!  Call me at 780-910-9669, email me at barry@barryt.ca, or contact me here. 

 

Buying Green

Friday, August 19th, 2011

Do you have too much stuff?  In our consumer-oriented society, whether we live in the city of Spruce Grove, a smaller community like Stony Plain, or on an acreage or country estate in the County of Parkland, it’s easy to accumulate “stuff”.  We might not even notice just how much stuff we’ve accumulated until it’s time to sell our homes.  But what if we could train ourselves to be more mindful of everything we bring into our homes so that moving to a new house is not such a chore?

Buying Green | Spruce Grove Stony Plain Parkland County Real Estate | Barry Twynam

An article in the Grove Examiner, published August 12, 2011, suggests some questions to ask ourselves before we commit to buying anything.  Paying attention to what we buy will save us money, save the environment, and maybe even do away with the need to move to a bigger house!  Thanks to Craig and Layla Baird, “The Green Couple”, for allowing their article to be posted here in its entirety.

 

Things to consider prior to your next consumer purchase

Craig and Layla Baird, The Green Couple

Every time you go out to buy something, what you buy has an impact on the environment.

That purchase has an impact by the waste it produces when it is manufactured, and the waste that is produced when you use it and when you are done with it.  In addition, the environmental impact of the production, transportation and consumption of the product has an effect on our planet.

This is why it is important to ask yourself the “Purchase Questions”.  These questions are:

1.     Does the cost of the item warrant the benefit we may receive from it?

This means that if the benefit is just an immediate gratification (such as a new pair of shoes that we really don’t need), then it is not worth the long-term cost.

2.     How much will this product be used after its initial ‘neatness’ wears off?

Buying one of those dancing electric animals is a perfect example of this.  It may seem neat now, but it will end up in the closet soon enough and likely long before you recoup the expense in enjoyment.

3.     Can it be recycled or given away later?

If it can, it makes buying it easier because someone else can get use out of it after we no longer use it.

4.     Where could this money be better spent?

If it could go to bills, mortgage, charity or anything else instead of the product, maybe it should be directed that way. 

5.     Why are we buying this product?

If the only reason is because we just saw it, then it is not a good buy.  Impulse buys are not something we want to do.  As well, if we buy it because we saw it on television, then perhaps again it is not a good buy.

Asking yourself those questions can not only save you money, but they can help you save the environment as well.

Need help finding homes for extra stuff?  See my blog article “Getting Rid of Stuff”

I’m happy to help with all your real estate needs.  Call me at 780-910-9669, email me at barry@barryt.ca, or contact me here. 

Barry Twynam, Century 21 Leading
#1 14 McLeod Avenue, Spruce Grove, Alberta, T7X 3X3
Tel: 780-910-9669 Cell: 780-910-9669 Fax: 780-962-9699
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