WHERE DO YOU PLAY IN WINTER?
AN EXPLORATION OF OUTDOOR WINTER RECREATION SPACES
IN PRINCE GEORGE, BC

by
Isla Barbara Rice Tanaka
B.A., University of Alberta, 1998

THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF
THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF
MASTER OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES

UNIVERSITY OF NORTHERN BRITISH COLUMBIA
February 2016

© Isla Tanaka, 2016

Participants' Expectations and Municipal Actions ................................................. .... ...... 115
Chapter 6 Conclusions ................ .. ...... ....... .... ... ........ ....... ..... ............ ... .. ............. ... ............. .. 118
Chapter 7 References ............... ............... ............... ..... ... .................................................. .. ... 127
Appendix 1 Research Information Form ............... .. ........ .. .. ...... .. ........ ...... ...... ............... ... ... 140
Appendix 2 Questionnaire Questions ... ......... ...... .... .. .... ..... .... ..... ... .............. ... .. ................... 142
Appendix 3 Sample Section from Questionnaire Response Spreadsheet.. ........................... 143
Appendix 4 Site Feature Recording Sheet.. ... .. .. ..... .... .. ..... ........ ........... .... ............. ............... 144
Appendix 5 Selection of Content Analysis Spreadsheet... ... ... ..... ........... ... ... .. ............. ......... 146
Appendix 6 Selection of Term Analysis Table .. ................................. ..... ..... ............. ........... 147
Appendix 7 Interview Questions ...... ... ..... ........ .......... ............... ........ .... .... ...... .. ...... ........... .. 148
Appendix 8 E-mail Message to Potential Interview Participants .................. ........ .... ........... 149
Appendix 9 Participant Information Letter and Consent Form .... ......................... ............... 150
Appendix 10 Interview Protocol for Interviews with City of Prince George Staff ..... ......... 154
Appendix 11 Sample Interview Question Recording Sheet ............. ... ............ ........ ... .. .. .. .... 156

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List of Tables
Table 1 Questionnaire Sampling Sites, Their Common Activities and Designations, and the

Number of Questionnaires Administered at Each Site ........ ..... ............... .................... ........... 34
Table 2 List of City ofPrince George Documents Analysed for Winter-Related Content .. .. . 42
Table 3 Number of Times Attractive Features Were Mentioned by Participants for the Five

Most-Popular Winter Outdoor Recreation Sites in Prince George, BC. .............. ....... ........... 73
Table 4 Presence of Winter City Design Elements in the Five Most-Popular Winter

Recreation Sites in Prince George, BC.... .... ................................................................ .......... . 89
Table 5 Suggestions for Improved Outdoor Winter Recreation in Prince George, BC ....... 103

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List of Figures
Figure 1. Patrons enjoying a sunny patio with colourful blankets during Edmonton's
Farewell to Winter Patio Party ................ ................ ...................... .............. ..... .................. .. ... 10
Figure 2. Hygge House on the Red River Mutual Trail in Winnipeg, MB. .... ..... ............ ..... . 11
Figure 3. Directing the wind over a public space through use of graded building heights . ... 18
Figure 4. Edmonton's Civic Plaza on a hot summer afternoon ...... ......... ... ............ ... ... ....... ... 21
Figure 5. Edmonton's Civic Plaza in winter during the Valentine 's Day Disco Skate . .... ..... 21
Figure 6. Community Foundation Park and Veterans Plaza in afternoon shade at mid-winter .
................ ... ..... ........ ..... ...................... .................... .. ........... ... ....... ..... .... .. ..... .... ....................... 25
Figure 7. Prince George Civic Plaza in afternoon shade at mid-winter .. ........ .. ..... ................ 25
Figure 8. Percentage of general population of Prince George and of questionnaire
respondents by age range ....... ....... ............... ....... .... ...... ...... .......... .. ......... .................. ... ... ....... 58
Figure 9. Recreation sites listed by questionnaire respondents . ........... .. .. .. .... ........................ 70
Figure 10. Recreation sites actively avoided by participants during the winter. ................ .. .. 72
Figure 11. Outdoor winter recreation activities as reported by residents of Prince George for
the previous year. .. ............... .... ......... ........ .... ...... .... ....... ... ..... .. ... ..... ............ ........... ............... . 83
Figure 12. Most popular winter recreation activities in Prince George, BC ............. ......... ... . 83
Figure 13. Sheltered, sunlit trail at Forests for the World .. .... .... ...... ............. ...... ................... 90
Figure 14. The Ice Oval, built in a natural depression to protect skaters from prevailing
winds ... .. .. ..... ............. .......... ..... ... .. ... ........ ... .......... ... .... ........ ...... .. ..... .. ...... ........... ...... .. ........... 91
Figure 15. The Otway Nordic Ski Centre stadium and lodge in direct sunlight, making the
area more comfortable for skiers . .. ....... ....... ...... .......... ...... ... ... ................ .................. ............. 92

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Figure 16. Interpretive signs with a mix of warm, natural materials and colour add visual

interest to the winter landscape, and can inform trail users about the area ..... .. .......... ...... ..... 94
Figure 17. Sign on closed park washroom door during the winter ....................... ..... .. .......... 96
Figure 18. Large windows face the ski hill, providing opportunities for indoor-outdoor

interactions ...... ..... ..... ... .... ......... ............ ....... .. ..... .................. ...... .......... ..... ............................ . 97
Figure 19. Garbage can on the right, almost buried and inaccessible in the wintertime, is an

example of how lack of consideration for snowpack levels during the planning stage can
result in problems ....... ... ....... ............ .. .. ......... ...... ..... ... ....... ...... .................. ...... ...... ........ .......... 98
Figure 20. Picnic table blocked by high snow levels because maintenance of amenities is not

carried out year-round ................. .... .... ......... ..... ...................... ............... ..... .............. .. .. ....... ... 99
Figure 21. Moveable benches give users flexibility for where they want to sit, and high

crossbars allow skiers to sit with their skis under the benches - if their legs are long enough!
..................... ..... ..... ..... ................ .... ... ......... .......................................... .......... ... .... ........... ..... 100
Figure 22. Outhouse, a vital amenity, blocked because of lack of regular maintenance in the

winter ...................... .... ..... ...... .. ..... ... ... ........... ... ...... ..... ...... ............. .. ...... ... ........... ...... ... ...... . 101
Figure 23. Number of responses related to responsibly for future winter recreation

development in Prince George, BC .... .. ............................. ......................... ... ..... ...... ..... ..... .. 108

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Acknowledgements
I would first like to thank Dr. Annie Booth for her support and unwavering patience.
She gave me the time and space to explore my topic, and guided me without forcing any
particular path. I would also like to thank the members of my committee, Dr. Greg Halseth
and Dr. Tracy Summerville. They provided insight and guidance as I needed it along the
way. Many other people in Prince George helped also, and deserve my thanks, including all
the participants and interviewees, fellow UNBC grad students, and friends, especially Terri
McClymont, who offered her house and home when I needed to stay.
My colleagues at the City of Edmonton were also a great support during the thesiswriting period. I am particularly indebted to Cheryl Wickware, without whose guidance tears
would have been shed over organizing the questionnaire results. I would like to thank Susan
Holdsworth and Kate Gunn for their wisdom and words of support, and Marian Bruin, who
kept asking if I was done yet. I must also thank Shauna Young, WinterCity wordsmith
extraordinaire, for reminding me of the importance of story.
Finally, I must express my extreme gratitude to family and friends who were there for
me throughout my studies, and while life threw a number of other challenges my way.
Correne Refsahl-Jensen, Lori Pittard and Shelley Nimcan: thank you for being you - vive les
Quatre Mousquetaires ! Christopher Lewis, you have helped in more ways than you will ever
know - that's why. Many, many thanks go to my mum, Jean A.H. Jackson, for always being
there - lang may yer lum reek! Finally, my two lovely, long-suffering children, Kimi and
Stewart Tanaka - on to the next adventure. Allons-y!

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Chapter 1 Introduction
We might think, naturally enough, that this will be a story about nature, about rivers
iced over and bodies in motion, that the truth of winter sports will be one of nation
and purity, of the mountain and the lake and the frozen pond, things set apart from the
city and its contests and its corruptions .... But the reality of recreational winter is
that it is cosmopolitan too, and city-made - hybridized and mongrelized and made up
of the deepest demands and needs of mixed-up people for mixed-up pleasures.
(Gopnik, 2011, p. 176)

Winter has long been seen as the off-season - the time to winterize the parks by
turning off the fountains, closing the washrooms, and getting ready for indoor leisure
activities. Granted, there have always been a few hardy souls who ventured out on crosscounty ski trails or went for a walk in the crisp winter air, but they have not been the norm. A
trip to a mountain resort for downhill skiing, complete with an apres-ski on a patio, is an
exciting get-away, but the idea of sitting outside drinking hot chocolate in a city park has oft
been met with questioning glances and possible doubts of sanity.
Beneficial links between outdoor activity and mental health are well understood
(Abraham, Sommerhalder, & Abel, 2010; Bedimo-Rung, Mowen, & Cohen, 2005). In the
winter, increased outdoor activity has a positive impact on mental health and helps to guard
against seasonal affective disorder (Grimaldi, Partonen, Saarni, Aromaa, & Lonnqvist, 2008).
In fact, not only mental but also physical benefits are associated with walking through urban
parks in the wintertime (Song et al., 2013). Given that most Canadian communities
experience at least three full months of winter per year, and that the mental and physical
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welfare of their citizens is important for the communities as a whole, increased park use in
winter should be encouraged.
Previous studies have shown that weather and climate influence the use of built-up
urban public spaces and urban recreation sites (Thorsson, Honjo, Lindberg, Eliasson, & Lim,
2007; Dwyer, 1988). A direct relationship has also been demonstrated between climatesensitive design and both the use of urban open spaces and users' behaviour (Zacharias,
Stathopoulou, & Wu, 2001; Eliasson, Knez, Westerberg, Thorsson, & Lindberg, 2007; Nash,
1981). Urban design elements affect rnicroclimates and individuals' thermal comfort levels,
but the relationship between design and comfort is complex, and is influenced by other
factors, such as activity levels and social behaviours (Chen & Ng, 2012). Design elements
also influence users' psychological adaptation to thermal comfort levels, increasing the
variety of environmental conditions that people are prepared to consider comfortable
(Nikolopoulou & Steemers, 2003). Data are lacking, however, on how existing knowledge
relates to outdoor sites for active recreation, and what features and amenities, or lack thereof,
people are looking for in outdoor winter recreation sites. My objective with this research is to
fill in some of the missing data by exploring factors that influence users' choices of outdoor
winter recreation spaces, using Prince George, BC, as a study area.
In order to get a full picture of the influences that affect outdoor winter recreation
choices, I wanted to explore not only users' choices of spaces and activities, but also their
desires for future development, and how current policy is aligned, or not aligned, with users'
expectations. The questions I sought to answer were:
1. What are residents of Prince George looking for in an outdoor winter recreation
site?

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2. What kinds of recreational activities are residents of Prince George engaging in
during the winter months?
3. How do residents perceive future development of outdoor winter recreation sites
in the City of Prince George?
4. How are residents' expectations for winter recreation spaces and City of Prince
George actions aligning, or not aligning?
Chapter 2, Literature Review, is organised around my four research questions. For
literature related to my first question, I explored the effects of climate, weather and
microclimates on the use of outdoor spaces. I looked at studies that explain people ' s
behaviour outdoors in winter for my second question. How residents can be involved in the
development and/or redevelopment of outdoor winter recreation spaces was of interest for
my third question. Finally, I looked at best practices for winter city design along with related
policy in northern cities to help explore the fourth question.
In Chapter 3 of this thesis, Research Methodology and Design, I explain why I chose
case study methodology to guide my research, and why questionnaires, site visits, municipal
document content analysis, and interviews were used. I also discuss how I analysed the data
and challenges that I encountered. The generalizability of my results are outlined in this
chapter as well, along with how I ensured rigour throughout my research project. I also
discuss the ethical considerations I had to keep in mind, and how I addressed them.
My results and their analyses are found in Chapter 4. This chapter is divided into four
sections: research participants; winter identity, policy and promotion; outdoor winter
recreation sites; and, future winter recreation development. I discuss the results from all of

3

the avenues of exploration together, triangulating the data to produce a rich picture of factors
that influence park users' choices in the winter.
In the final and concluding chapter, I discuss how my research findings relate to
existing literature, and suggest avenues of future research. I also discuss lessons learned
about the community of Prince George, including how community groups, planners, and the
municipality could use my data. Finally, I argue how the results of my research will be of
interest to anyone living in municipalities found in northern latitudes.

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Chapter 2 Literature Review
This chapter is organized in four sections. In the first, I will discuss the existing
literature related to the effects of thermal comf011, climate, weather and microclimates on the
use of outdoor spaces in winter. This literature is focused mainly on urban public spaces, and
I will argue that there is a gap in the literature as it pertains to park spaces. The second
section explores how people behave outside in winter. In the third section, I will outline how
residents have been involved in park redevelopment that took multi-season design into
account. Finally, I will discuss the literature on best practices for winter city design, as well
as policy from other winter cities.
What are Residents of Prince George Looking for in an Outdoor Winter Recreation
Site?
I wanted to understand why residents of Prince George chose particular outdoor sites
for recreation during the winter months. What did they like about the sites? Were they
looking for particular facilities or features? Were there common elements at the most popular
locations in and around Prince George, for example, open or sheltered areas, or access to
heated facilities?
I began my literature research by looking at studies into the effects of thermal
comfort, climate, weather, and microclimates I on the use of outdoor spaces. Thermal comfort

1

Climate is the "long-term average pattern of local, regional, or global weather," microclimate is "climate on a

very local scale, which differs from the general climate of the area," and weather is "the combination of
temperature, humidity, precipitation, wind, cloudiness, and other atmospheric conditions at a specific place and
time" (Smith & Smith, 2006, p. G-3 , G-10 & G-17).

5

refers to the human need to maintain our internal core body temperature at 3 7°C, and the
ways in which we adapt clothing, activities and our surroundings to maintain this optimum
temperature (Nikolopoulou, Baker, & Steemers, 2001). Climate affects the seasonal changes
of a place, and shapes year-round activities of residents. It is generally predictable, and
residents come to expect to sunbathe in summer and ski in winter, for example. Weather, on
the other hand, is a daily occurrence, and can change drastically in a short period of time think of a picnic suddenly rained out, or ski tracks melted away by a warm chinook wind.
Microclimates occur at a much smaller scale, and can provide shelter from wind, heat and
cold, offering a comfortable space in which to sit or play. All four phenomena play a role in
how people feel about, perceive, and use outdoor spaces.
Climate helps shape the range of temperature that people find comfortable and
acceptable for various outdoor activities. Knez and Thorsson (2008) refer to these
temperature ranges, or thresholds, as subjective thermal comfort scales, and argue that these
scales influence cultural responses to seasons and weather patterns. Thermal comfort is also
influenced by users' memories and expectations of a space, as well as their immediate
thermal history, that is, how warm or cold they were before they entered the space
(Nikolopoulou, et al., 2001). Nikolopoulou and Steemers (2003) further posit that
psychological adaptations to climate are just as important as physical adaptations for
determining thermal comfort levels. Norway, for example, is a northern country that spans as
many as 14 degrees of latitude, and experiences a variety of climates, including long, dark
winters (Statistics Norway, 2012). The Norwegian people have adapted to their local and
regional climates, choosing to embrace winter instead of hiding from it. Indeed, a prominent
Norwegian proverb says, "There is no bad weather, only poor clothing choices." In fact,

6

Norwegian schoolchildren have one school-day a week dedicated to playing outside, even in
the coldest, darkest parts of winter because the Norwegian government has recognized that
play is vitally important for children's development and culture (Steinsvik, 2004).
Not only Norwegian children but children in general have been found to enjoy winter.
In an international study of children and adults, younger children have a more positive view
of winter than older children, while adults have the least positive view (Enai, Pressman,
Li.ittgen, Zheng, & Heikkinen, n.d.). In addition, the more time children spend outside, the
more likely they are to have positive feelings towards winter (Enai et al., n.d.).
Edmonton, AB, experiences a climate that includes at least three months of winter per
year. When the city's WinterCity Strategy (City of Edmonton [COE], 2012) was developed,
residents were asked what would make them fall in love with winter in Edmonton.
Edmontonians responded with ideas such as, "Let's look at winter from a kid's perspective
and find the joy in snow again" and "To have cool things happen outside in winter, all you
have to do is spend time with some 7 year olds" (COE, 2012, p. 5 & 11). When the city sent
a research delegation to Norway and Finland, they were told it is important to remind people
on a yearly basis that winter can be fun, and that developing winter recreation skills at an
early age will help to "foster a deep appreciation for winter" (COE, 2011, p. 16).
A link between spending time outside and being able to adapt to and enjoy the
seasons and local climate has been found in many cities. Although London, England, is not
considered a northern winter city, it does on occasion receive snow in winter. In a study of
office workers who spend most of their time indoors in the heart of London, Hitchings (2010)
found that workers were not very aware of seasonal changes. Interviewees often recounted
talking to colleagues in the summer about wanting to spend more time outside, but winter

7

was generally ignored as being a potentially depressing topic. During the year of study,
however, London experienced a single snowfall, which distracted many of the workers.
Although the interviewees depicted the occasion as inconvenient for their regular routines,
their "displayed delight was routinely described as ' childlike"' (Hitchings, 2010, p. 293).
While the workers felt their responses were not necessarily appropriate for a professional
workplace, they seemed to be reminded of happy childhood memories of playing in the
snow.
The London office workers are not unique in their view of winter being an
inconvenience. A study of winter public order in the Twin Cities of Saint Paul and
Minneapolis, USA, showed that some people refused to let winter affect their routines; in
fact, many showed open "disdain" by deliberately under-dressing (Nash, 1981, p. 233). Nash
cites examples of office workers walking between buildings without a coat, hat or mitts, and
a student waiting for a bus in sub-zero temperatures wearing an unfastened down vest.
People adventurous enough to venture out on bitterly cold days, however, reported claiming
personal ownership, or mastery, over the landscape (Nash, 1981). Chen and Ng (2012)
maintain that "the use of outdoor space is determined not only by the 'state of body' but also
by the 'state of mind'" (p. 122).
As has been shown above, climate and psychological adaptation influence individual
and collective responses to winter and outdoor winter activities. Weather and local
rnicroclimates also play an important role. A study conducted in Gothenburg, Sweden, found
that "air temperature, wind speed and clearness index have a significant influence on the
participants' weather assessments and place-related perceptions, emotions and attendance"

8

(Eliasson et al., 2007, p. 81) (Eliasson et al. use the term clearness index to describe the
amount of cloud cover).
The use of outdoor spaces fluctuates daily depending on local weather phenomena,
such as sun, rain and snow. The daily use prediction model used for an urban forest
recreation site in Chicago, USA, was found to account for about 90% of the variation in users
(Dwyer, 1988). While the percentages of sun and rain throughout the day could be factored
into the model, snow was described as "the most difficult weather variable to interpret
because it can have so many different influences on use" (Dwyer, 1988, p. 134). Dwyer
(1988) explains that the amount and type of snow can influence activities. Freshly fallen
snow, for example, may make an area visually attractive and encourage cross-country skiing,
snowshoeing, walking and tobogganing. At the same time, skating might decrease if rinks
have not been cleared. Similarly, if the new snowfall is heavy, access to sites might be
blocked. While weather patterns generally affect a large urban area, microclimates can
positively, or negatively, affect individuals' comfort in outdoor spaces. Microclimates can
encompass a town square big enough for several hundred people, or they can be as small as a
bench tucked into a sheltered alcove.
Mitigating the negative effects of climate and weather through the creation and use of
microclimates can positively affect public attendance in outdoor spaces. Public activities and
presence in downtown open spaces can be predicted and modelled based on microclimatic
conditions (Zacharias et al., 2001). Even simple solutions can have a significant effect on
people's comfort levels: Danish architect Jan Gehl (2010) reports that street life in
Scandinavia has been extended into spring and autumn, and even to some warm winter days,
thanks in part to patio heaters and blankets at coffee shops and restaurants.

9

Cafes, pubs and restaurants across Canada are taking their cue from European
counterparts, and warming their patios and sidewalk cafes with heaters and blankets, as can
be seen at a riverside cafe in Edmonton, AB, in Figure 1. In winter 2015 , BlogTO (Ipsum,
2015) issued a list of the top ten year-round patios in Toronto, ON. In the same winter,
Edmonton held its second annual Farewell to Winter Patio Party. In Windsor, ON recently,
city council voted to allow sidewalk cafes to operate year-round, with a few provisions,
including that a heating element be provided per ten customers (Windsor City Council,
2015). Cafe Bicyclette in Edmonton went a step further and, in 2013, put a wood stove on
their patio and built a snow wall to keep the wind off the diners (Ramsay, 2013). While not
everyone buys into the winter patio phenomenon, Canadians across the country are bundling
up and embracing the cozy, microclimate-controlled winter patios.

Figure 1. Patrons enjoying a sunny patio with colourful blankets during Edmonton' s Farewell to
Winter Patio Party.

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Another more artistic way of creating microclimates is taking hold in Canada, too.
Winter warming huts are typically small structures that are meant to give users shelter from
the wind and a place to rest. The huts can be temporary or permanent, heated or not, totally
enclosed or as basic as a wall. Started in 2009, Winnipeg 's Warming Huts is a competition
that began "with the simple goal of making art, architecture and design important in a place
that had nothing but cold wooden benches stuffed into the snow" (Hargraves, 2014, p. 29).
The huts are placed along the Red and Assiniboine Rivers ' Red River Mutual Trail which,
according to the Forks North Portage Corporation (2015), is the longest naturally-frozen
skating trail in the world. The warming huts, like Hygge House in Figure 2, which is painted
a bright lime green on the inside, not only provide a place to sit and rest out of the wind, but
they also add colour, whimsy, and a sense of place for skaters, cyclists, snowshoers, and
those just out for a stroll.

Photo credit: Susan Holdsworth.
Figure 2. Hygge House on the Red River Mutual Trail in Winnipeg, MB.
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Business owners are also known to choose locations based on microclimates, as was
found in a study conducted in Liege, Belgium. Looking at shop location and solar exposure
within public squares, Cornelis (1999) found that businesses selling personal items, such as
clothing, accessories and shoes, were often located in shady locations in order to keep direct
sunlight off windows showcasing merchandise. Household and business-related merchandise
shops, however, were in locations with morning sun exposure, while cafe owners sought
sunny, sheltered locations, and restaurateurs preferred the afternoon sun (Cornelis, 1999).
The literature reviewed above describes, for the most part, how people respond to
thermal comfort, climate, weather and microclimates in built urban spaces. Dwyer's (1988)
article cited above, Predicting daily use of urban forest recreation sites, is the only article I
found which specifically addresses climate, weather and larger urban recreation sites.
However, Dwyer addresses annual daily-use of the forest, not winter-use in particular. I
argue that there is a gap in the literature addressing winter-use of larger urban outdoor
recreation spaces.
What Kinds of Recreational Activities Are Residents of Prince George Engaging in
During the Winter Months?
Part of the decision-making process in choosing recreation sites involves choosing an
activity. I wanted to know what the most popular winter outdoor activities were in and
around Prince George, and where people went to enjoy them. The background literature to
support this question came from studies that looked at people's behaviour outdoors in winter.
As already shown above, people's behaviour, and by extension their activities of
choice, change in the winter. But those behaviours are also influenced by the urban

12

environment itself. For example, when the Liege business owners mentioned above make
choices about location for their shops, their choices not only affect the design of public
spaces, they also affect how the public move in and use those spaces. Canadian architect and
urban planner Clement Demers claims that the seasonal cultural shift affects not only
people' s behaviour but also the urban form itself. In an interview with Landry (2014),
Demers discusses some of the multi-season considerations that were taken into account when
two Montreal quarters were redesigned and revitalized. In the interview, Demers argues that,
"les gens et les amenagements vivent differemment en hiver" (as cited in Landry, 2014, p.
49). So not only do behaviours change because of the winter experience, but the behaviours
change because the urban environment itself is altered by winter.
Whether the shift in behavior is limited to people or also includes the built form, Nash
(1981) argues that the temporary seasonal shift in both accepted behaviours and the uses of
outdoor spaces needs to be capitalised upon. He argues that cultural adaptations to climate
already exist and that "space usages and policy directed at winter time utilization should
allow for increased individual freedom in definitions of territoriality" (Nash, 1981 , p. 241 ).
By this Nash means that in the wintertime, people will claim areas for recreation that they
would not claim in the summer. In some cases, "practices are often ' quasi-legal' and
governed by informal, temporary and incomplete normative structures" (Nash, 1981 , p. 241),
or what he terms "democratization of urban space" (p. 237).
However, in order to understand and capitalise on informal adaptations, it is
important to know both what the favoured activities of local residents are and where they
enjoy them. During the study in the Twin Cities, Nash (1981) found that: golf courses were
opened for tobogganing, cross-country skiing and snowshoeing; waiting inside building

13

doorways for buses was more readily accepted; police were more tolerant of runners on
roadways and of couples parking in cul-de-sacs (purportedly for romantic rendezvous); and,
sleds for general public use were left unattended at festivals. Recognizing the seasonal shift
in cultural norms and behaviours in outdoor spaces in winter will help with future planning
and design decisions.
How do Residents Perceive Future Development of Winter Outdoor Recreation Sites in
the City of Prince George?
The parks and natural settings in and around Prince George, BC, offer numerous
opportunities for informal and spontaneous winter recreation. Two developed areas offer an
extensive Nordic ski trail network and a small downhill ski area. I was curious to find out if
residents were interested in more developed recreation opportunities in the future, and who
they thought should be responsible for developing and/or paying for them.
In some places, like Charlottetown, PEI, residents are leading the discussion. In 2013,
the City of Charlottetown began public consultation on changes to its Victoria Park. A draft
master plan was presented to citizens, who responded quite passionately about the lack of
consideration for winter recreation (Robertson, 2014). As a result of the public input, the new
plan has trails that are suited to summer walking as well as to cross-country skiing and
snowshoeing. Winter amenities such as warming huts and bonfire areas were also added, and
the management plan considers trail maintenance for winter walking and cross-country
skiing areas, as well as year-round programming needs. Charlottetown' s experience is a
prime example of why planners and designers need to understand why residents choose
where and how they play in winter. This knowledge should lead to better multi-season site
design and planning for winter recreation.

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How are Residents' Expectations for Winter Recreation Spaces and City of Prince
George Actions Aligning, or Not Aligning?

This question comes from my own personal observations of an apparent lack of
winter considerations in Prince George parks and in public information documents. For
example, amenities such as public washrooms are closed in the winter, playgrounds become
inaccessible because of a lack of snow clearing, and very few winter photos appear in city
documents relating to parks and recreation. In addition, park planning documents and
maintenance schedules do not appear to consider activities during the winter. I would like to
know why this is. What are the challenges and constraints that the city faces when planning
recreation sites for winter? Also, what approach does the city take in developing partnerships
for new and ongoing winter recreation opportunities?
I began the background research for this question by looking at best practices for
designing and building winter cities before looking at the City of Prince George itself. In
1982, the Livable Winter Cities Association was formed, and knowledge was shared through
conferences held in a number of northern cities around the world, including Prince George
(Winter Cities Institute, 2015). The association folded in the early 2000s, but support for
knowledge in winter city planning has been carried on through the Winter Cities Institute,
though little formal research has been undertaken in the field (Winter Cities Institute, 2015).
Much of the older literature is still sound, however, and comprised much of my reading.
Pressman (1995) argues that mitigating winter's harsher realities can be addressed
through acknowledging climatic conditions and designing for them. Improving the aesthetic
of the city through the use of bold colours, increasing lighting during the darker part of the
year, and integrating shelter and screening elements in building and street design are some

15

ways of enhancing the physical design of a city (Pressman, 1995). Just as essential are
rethinking recreation and leisure2 spaces to accommodate very different summer and winter
activities, considering human comfort and accessibility concerns, and planning for the
constraints that snow imposes on pedestrian and vehicular traffic (Pressman, 1995). While
the afore-mentioned considerations focus on improving the pedestrian experience in
residential and commercial areas, the same concepts also apply to recreation spaces, both
small and large.
Drifting snow and harsh prevailing winds can make navigating a winter city
unpleasant. Both phenomena can, however, be mitigated through the use of vegetation and
landscape features, as well as the height, placement and design of buildings. When
developing a new area, maintaining as much of the existing tree-stand as possible is an
effective, and cost-saving, way to begin creating wind blocks and microclimates (Kuismanen,
2005). Adding additional vegetation at varying heights assists with wind reduction,
especially when tall, sparse vegetation is used over a large site, and short, dense vegetation is
used to protect walkways and small areas (Kuismanen, 2005).
In some cases, existing vegetation and landscape features will guide the wind in a
particular direction, and buildings, gathering spaces and/or parks can be placed in sheltered
areas. Sometimes, however, mitigation through design is necessary. In the 1960s, architect

2

Leisure spaces are mentioned because Pressman distinguishes between active recreation and leisure activities.

In the context of winter city design, examples of leisure activities include sitting on street furniture in the sun on

a winter day, taking a stroll in a downtown park, or sitting outside on a cafe patio. Leisure activities are outside
the scope of this project, but are mentioned purely as part of the literature on winter city design.

16

Ralph Erskine designed residential buildings in Swedish towns with "rounded comers and
hill-like sectional profiles" to redirect the wind flow (Pallasmaa, 2010, p. 31). His windbreak
building in the mining town of Svappavaara, Sweden, in particular, influenced the design of
the subarctic mining town of Ferment, QC. Expanding on Erskine's idea, Canadian architect
Maurice Desnoyers and his team designed Ferment's 1.3 km-long windbreak building,
commonly known as Le mur, to include not only residences but also shops and services,
recreation and sports centres, and even a school (M. Johnson, 2011).
The City of Edmonton is planning a windbreak for its new Blatchford neighbourhood,
but is taking a different approach: remoulding the landscape itself. In 2009, Edmonton's City
Council decided to close its 83-year-old municipal airport and build a sustainable, familyfriendly community in the 217-hectare area (COE, 2015). Planners were handed a rare
opportunity to design a complete neighbourhood in the centre of a large city. Taking winter
design principles into account, the designers planned a hill along the north end of the
community that will act as a wind block against the cold north wind (COE, 2015). The top of
the hill will also serve as a year-round vantage point, and the slope will serve as a toboggan
area in the winter. The large amount of earth needed to form the hill will come from on-site
excavation to form the storm-water ponds (COE, 2015). Early plans call for the ponds to be
used for summer water sports and winter ice skating, but the technical details of how to deal
with fluctuating water runoff levels have not yet been finalised.
Much like the effect that the hill will have on the Edmonton Blatchford
neighbourhood, grading the heights of buildings is another effective tool for reshaping wind
flow and direction. Figure 3 illustrates how wind can be guided over an urban area,
effectively sheltering inhabitants. Another simple strategy that can be used to mitigate winter

17

conditions and create microclimates is building placement. Courtyard housing complexes
found in Reykjavik, Iceland, for example, are designed in a U-shape to bend the wind around
the buildings (Pressman, 2004). The result is sunny, sheltered, south-facing courtyards for
residents to enjoy. The vehicle parking lots are relegated to the north side of the complex.

Note: Based on an illustration by Anne-Karine Halvorsen Thoren, in Kuismanen, 2005, p. 21.
Figure 3. Directing the wind over a public space through use of graded building heights.

In addition to tiering heights and considering placement of multiple buildings,
individual house and building design have a considerable influence on winter comfort.
Kuismanen (2005) contends that long protective canopies with a depth of at least 15% of the
building height help redirect wind from the fayade of a building. In addition, L-shaped
buildings are much more effective at creating microclimates than are rectangular-shaped ones
(Kuismanen, 2005). Other wind-mitigating and winter-enhancing design features include:
making ground floors broader than upper stories, much like houses in the Bemer-Oberland
area of Switzerland; building houses with plough-shaped backs and wide south-facing fronts
18

like many older houses in Scandinavia and Switzerland; and, creating enclosed courtyards
and protective walls (Kuismanen, 2005; Pressman, 2004).
Designing compact communities and mixing land use are also recommended for
winter cities (Pressman, 2004; City of St. Albert, 2009). Noguchi (2002) argues that
apartment-style housing is "ideal for northern cities" (p. 271). He cites a decrease in snow
removal labour, lower heating costs, ample indoor space for winter activities, and an increase
in available open space, allowing for snow storage and access to sunlight. Designing nonresidential space in apartment buildings also allows for greater access to services in the
winter, especially for persons with reduced mobility (including persons with disabilities,
seniors, and parents with strollers) (Noguchi, 2002). On a larger scale, compact design,
multi-use buildings, and mixed land use policies encourage active transportation and
discourage use of the automobile (Pressman, 2004). Higher-density and more compact urban
forms are also more easily served by public transportation (Pressman, 2004).
In addition to mixed land use, designing a space that is versatile enough for a variety
of activities encourages multi-seasonal use (Pressman, 1999). The Civic Plaza outside
Edmonton's City Hall is an excellent example of multi-season design. The plaza itself is
south-facing, bounded by mature deciduous and coniferous trees on the east side, the main
city hall building to the north, and an arm of the building along the west side. The plaza
contains a depressed area that is used as a wading pool in the summer and a skating rink in
the winter, as shown in Figures 4 and 5. The westerly building arm houses large public
washroom facilities and a skate-changing area for the winter. The Kids in the Hall Bistro is
also contained in the same part of the building, offering visitors cold and hot refreshments
(E4C, n.d. ).

19

The physical layout of the Edmonton Civic Plaza area is key to its success as a multiseason, multi-activity public space. The plaza is sheltered from the wind on three sides, but
has maximum solar exposure year-round from the open south side. Also, the mix of
deciduous and coniferous trees on the east side provides plenty of shade in the summertime,
while allowing for more light in the winter without compromising the wind-block effect.
Creative use of light in the winter enhances the space, and makes it more attractive during
special events.

20

Figure 4. Edmonton's Civic Plaza on a hot summer afternoon.

Figure 5. Edmonton's Civic Plaza in winter during the Valentine's Day Disco Skate.

21

Aside from the physical form and function of a winter city, the recreational and
cultural aspects must also be considered. Liittgen (2002) perhaps says it best:
Every possible motivation to promote the positive aspects of winter and enhance
public spaces with various expressions of festive winter 'decor' becomes essential:
[sic] colourful visual effects, street-lighting and decoration, attractive and
comfortable urban furniture, ice and snow civic art, urban-outdoor sports and games,
festivals, carnivals and neighbourhood programmed activities as catalysts for
enjoying sports and its seasonal diversity. (p. 247)
This philosophy is embraced in the Scandinavian countries. The city of Lulea, Sweden,
creatively illuminates its main shopping street, installs fireplaces at regular intervals along its
pedestrian shopping street to warm pedestrians, and provides places for ice and snow
sculptures to be built (Pressman, 2004). Malmo, Sweden, as well as Longyearbyen, Norway,
and Nuuk, Greenland, have all adopted colour schemes for buildings to brighten the winter
months (Pressman, 2004).
Considerations for terrain, wind patterns, building placement and form, and
ultimately human comfort must all be taken into account when designing in winter cities.
Creating a community that not only mitigates the harsher climatic realities of winter, but one
that embraces winter as a season to enjoy and celebrate, means overcoming long-standing
prejudice against winter in the field of planning (Coleman, 2002). Even when the benefits of
planning for winter are known, actually adopting new ways of thinking about and designing
urban spaces can be slow, as I found in looking at literature on Prince George itself.
In BC, Official Community Plans (OCP) are developed to guide local governments in
the areas of planning and land-use management (BC Ministry of Community, Sport &

22

Cultural Development, 2012). The 2001 City of Prince George Official Community Plan (PG
OCP) (City of Prince George [City of PG], 2001) mentions winter three times: it promotes
the use of colour and lighting to enhance "our winter landscape" (p. 5); it encourages
developers to question whether their plan accommodates climatic variations and enriches the
winter environment; and it suggests the creation of a "public winter garden" downtown (p.
52). A search for the term winter in the 2011 PG OCP, however, reveals 20 results. Many of
the uses of the term refer to winter wildlife habitat, road maintenance and the 2015 Canada
Winter Games, but the terms winter city, winter city design, and winter design appear four
times, twice and once, respectively. Winter is also given a place of importance in the section
on cultural identity: "The City's identity is strongly affected by the four seasons, especially
winter and the cold, snow and ice it brings" (City of PG, 2011, p. 15).
In addition to addressing winter in the OCPs, the city created a now-defunct City of
Prince George Winter City Committee (2008), whose purpose was to "promote positive
winter life-styles for Prince George citizens and the general community" (p. 1). A document
entitled Climate Sensitive Design for the City of Prince George was produced by the
Development Services Department and the Winter City Committee "as a resource to
developers, architects, engineers, planners, and others involved in determining the design of
development within our community" (City of PG, n.d.a, p. 11). As part of its mandate, the
Prince George Advisory Committee on Development Design (n.d.) is instructed that it "may
refer to the document entitled Climate Sensitive Design for the City of Prince George ... as
appropriate" (p. 1).
Despite the above-mentioned efforts, however, aside from marketing, winter city
design strategies have been "not only limited, but the existing knowledge is not being

23

utilized" (Ryser & Halseth, 2008). Examples of poor winter city design in Prince George
include the public spaces and parks in the downtown area. The Community Foundation Park
and Veterans Plaza3 are both located on the north side of buildings, leaving them in the shade
during the day in mid-winter, as shown in Figure 6. The Civic Plaza, too, is not well placed.
The conceptual design behind the Civic Plaza addresses multi-season use; however, it is
bordered by multi-story buildings and tall coniferous trees on the east, south and west sides,
leaving it in shade at mid-day in winter, as can be seen in Figure 7.

3

The spelling of Veterans Plaza is inconsistent on the City of Prince George website. For the purposes of this

document, "Veterans Plaza" will be used.

24

Figure 6. Community Foundation Park and Veterans Plaza in afternoon shade at mid-winter.

Figure 7. Prince George Civic Plaza in afternoon shade at mid-winter.

The City of Prince George made improvements to its Parks web site in Winter
2014/15, and added a Winter In Parks [sic] page. This page offers information on crosscountry skiing, snowshoeing, tobogganing, and winter trails. However, the Destination Parks
page remains summer-focused, and describes destination parks as follows:
Although the City of Prince George has many parks, the Destination Parks showcase
our major parks. Spend the day amongst beautiful flower beds, meandering paths and
towering trees. Bring the family for a picnic in Rainbow Park, play in the Spray Park
at Fort George Park, enjoy the views of our city from Connaught Hill Park or relax on
the grass in Veterans Plaza on your lunch hour during the work day. You will feel
renewed and refreshed after a day at our Destination Parks. (City of PG, 2013b)
25

In addition, of the five parks mentioned in the description above, one is closed in the
wintertime (Connaught Hill Park) and two are in perpetual winter shade (Community
Foundation Park and Veterans Plaza).
The city promotes winter recreation on the parks page of its annual Community
Active Living Guide. In the Fall 2012/Winter 2013 edition (City of PG, 2012), residents are
encouraged to, "Come and explore what Prince George has to offer. It' s in our Nature! " (p.
54). Suggested activities include tobogganing, walking, building a snowman, skating, and
strolling through the downtown core. Snowshoeing is not listed, although one of the photos is
of a couple snowshoeing. The Fall 2013/Winter 2014 (City of PG, 2013) and Fall
2014/Winter 2015 (City of PG, 2014) active living guides use similar tag-lines for the parks
pages. The Fall 2014/Winter 2015 suggested activity list is longer, but also includes some fall
activities. In addition, the activity pages in the 2014/ 15 publication are expanded to two, and
include more information about city trails and tobogganing sites.
The fall/winter Community Active Living Guides refer residents to the new urban
Walking Trail Guide. This trail brochure mentions winter only twice: once to explain that
Connaught Hill Park is closed to vehicular traffic in the winter; and, once to describe
Moore' s Meadow Park as a popular winter destination for snowshoers (City of PG, n.d.d).
Whether or not any trails are cleared or ploughed for winter access is not mentioned. In
actual fact, the Transportation Division does not clear the smaller community walking paths
located throughout the city (City of PG, 201 lb).
I will discuss the city documents further in the content analysis section of my
research. It is important to note, too, that privately- and community-run facilities also offer
opportunities for winter recreation within the city limits. Examples include the Ice Oval,

26

neighbourhood ice rinks, the Otway Nordic Ski Centre and the Hart Highlands Ski Hill.
Some of these facilities are examined further in the results section because of how they rated
in the results of my primary research. I expect that these private facilities will not score as
highly on the winter design elements, simply because the city does not have jurisdiction to
impose the climate-sensitive design guidelines on external development plans. While the city
can encourage the use of the guidelines by others, the only place it can ensure that they are
used is in municipal projects. City spaces that were designed before the guidelines were
created, though, may be difficult and costly to retrofit, so I expect to see a mix of good and
poor winter design in city recreation spaces. I also expect that I will not find much winter
imagery in city documents, as this is an observation I made before starting this project, and is
one of the reasons that I decided to conduct a content analysis on municipal documents.

27

Chapter 3 Research Methodology and Design
This chapter describes all the considerations that went into designing my research
project. I will discuss why I chose the methodology that I used and the accompanying
methods that I employed to gather data. I will also explain how I incorporated rigour in my
project before, during, and after the research phase. The ethical considerations I kept in mind
are also outlined, as well as how I plan to share my findings.
Methodology
When I looked at various methodologies to frame my research, I knew that whatever I
chose had to support my exploration of an area that had little other research to build on. I
found few studies that looked at what people were looking for when choosing an outdoor
recreation site. No Prince George-specific studies had asked residents which recreational
activities they engaged in during the winter months, or how they perceived future
development of outdoor recreation sites within the city. 4 I also wanted to explore whether or
not residents' expectations for winter recreation spaces and city actions were aligning. Some
previous research was conducted on winter city design and urban planning in a city, but again
there was very little information on designing recreation sites for winter.
Baxter (2010) states that case studies test and/or generate theories, and are useful for
looking into "under-explored and thus under-theorized phenomena" (p. 89). This certainly

4 It is important to note that after I completed the questionnaire portion ofmy research, the City of Prince

George undertook, as part of its Community Recreation Services Plan (City of PG, 2014b ), a city-wide survey
to examine residents ' recreational activities; however, the focus was on year-round activities, not winterspecific ones.

28

seemed to fit my area of research. While exploring case study methodology and research, I
found that they "involve the study of a single instance or small number of instances of a
phenomenon in order to explore in-depth nuances of the phenomenon and the contextual
influences on and explanations of that phenomenon" (Baxter, 2010, p. 81 ). My decision to
study the opinions of residents in Prince George appeared to fit the criteria of studying a
single incidence in order to explore the larger phenomenon of what residents of a winter city
look for in outdoor recreation sites in winter.
I also found, however, that case study methodology has its limitations. Gerring (2006)
contends that case studies are better for generating a hypothesis rather than testing one, and
are more useful for finding causal mechanisms than causal effects. Eisenhardt (1989)
acknowledges that building theories from case studies can lead to novel, emergent, or
empirically valid theories, but also warns that these theories can be overly complex, or
"narrow and idiosyncratic" (p. 547). Flyvbjerg (2006) argues that the advantage of case
studies is depth, but that they lack breadth; however, a mix of large sample studies and case
studies in the same field will provide the necessary mix for sound theory development.
Reading further, I also found that case studies employ a number of different methods,
have as their goal a deep understanding of a particular phenomenon (Berg, 2001; Creswell,
2009), and have the underlying "philosophical assumption" that the resulting knowledge is
"valuable on its own without specific regard to how the phenomenon is manifest in cases that
are not studied" (Baxter, 2010, p. 82). In addition, case studies are the "preferred (strategy) in
examining contemporary events ... when the relevant behaviors cannot be manipulated"
(Yin, 1994, p. 8). Despite the methodological limitations, I believed that my research would
be valuable on its own, it would examine a contemporary event where I could not manipulate

29

behaviours of the participants, and would provide a depth of knowledge to its field. As a
result, I chose case study methodology to frame my research.
Stake argues that, depending on the researcher's focus, there are three types of case
studies: intrinsic, instrumental, and collective5 (as cited in Berg, 2001, p. 229). While I was
not looking specifically to discover what makes the residents of Prince George unique in
their choices, the context influencing their decisions cannot be divorced from the research
(Gagnon, 2010; Yin, 1994). Prince George is a small, rather isolated city which acts as a
regional hub in northern BC. Residents of Prince George have easy access to both built and
natural spaces for recreation activities, differentiating them from residents of larger urban
centres. What I was more interested in, however, is the larger "'how' and 'why' questions"
related to residents' choices of particular outdoor recreation spaces for winter recreational
use (Yin, 1994, p.6). According to Stake, case studies that are undertaken to advance theories
or to shed light on an issue are classified as instrumental case studies (as cited in Berg, 2001,
p. 229). Instrumental case studies are approached holistically, using the data from all avenues
ofresearch to improve theoretical understanding of the problem (Berg, 2001). While not
using the same terminology, Yin (1995) agrees that case studies "rely on multiple sources of
evidence, with data needing to converge in a triangulating fashion, and as another result" (p.
13).

5 "Intrinsic case studies are undertaken when a researcher wants to better understand a particular case, ...

instrumental case studies provide insights into an issue or refine a theoretical explanation, (and) ... collective
case studies involve the extensive study of several instrumental cases" (Berg, 2001, p. 229).

30

Because I wanted to know the hows and whys ofresidents' choices, and I also wanted
to understand the city' s approach to planning for winter outdoor recreation sites, I believed
the holistic nature and approach of instrumental case study methodology was best suited to
my research. The multiple avenues of exploration I chose to pursue were public opinions,
municipal policies and documents, and design features of outdoor sites themselves. I hoped
that in triangulating the data, I would better understand the factors that influence residents'
and the city's decisions surrounding outdoor winter recreational spaces.

Methods
Before choosing my research methods, I identified my study area as the City of
Prince George, BC. Located in the central interior of British Columbia at 53° North, Prince
George is British Columbia's self-declared northern capital (City of PG, 1997-2010). It is a
city of approximately 70,000 residents, and provides a variety of services to the surrounding
region (City of PG, 1997-2010). Average daily temperatures range from 15.5°C in summer to
-9.6°C in winter, and snowfalls can be expected nine months of the year (Environment
Canada, 2010). Prince George markets itself as a winter city, and successfully bid for the
2015 Canada Winter Games with the slogan, "We are winter". Like other cities in northern
climes, Prince George has many of the same social and infrastructure planning considerations
as its southern neighbours, but it must also contend with the extra difficulties that winter
imposes: sub-zero temperatures, cold winds, snow, ice, and decreased light for part of the
year (Winter Cities Association, 1999).
While exploring potential methods, I kept in mind that I wanted to both engage
residents who participated in outdoor recreation and talk to city staff. I also wanted to explore
city policy on parks planning and winter services, as well as the layout and design of the

31

most popular sites. According to Babbie (1995), field research is "especially appropriate to
the study of those topics for which attitudes and behaviors can best be understood within
their natural setting" (p. 281 ). Content analysis, on the other hand, "is particularly well suited
to the study of communications and to answering the classic question of communications
research: 'Who says what, to whom, why, how, and with what effect?'" (Babbie, 1995, p.
307). In order to answer my research questions, I chose to conduct field research through the
use of questionnaires with the public, interviews with city staff, and site visits to the three
most popular recreation areas, based on the results from the questionnaires. I also chose to
carry out content analysis on select city documents.

Questionnaires. I chose to use questionnaires because I wanted to talk to the
residents myself; I did not want an impersonal on-line or e-mail survey where I could not
clarify open-ended answers. I also believed that the responses would be more authentic if the
questionnaires were administered in situ: outside, where people were enjoying winter
activities. I was also curious to see ifl would develop a sense of emerging themes while I
was in the field, which I did, and will address later.
In many studies, sampling procedures are designed to select participants who will
statistically represent the greater population (Robinson, 1998). Because I was not able to find
data on the activity-levels of the residents of Prince George, I was not able to actively target
specific groups within the greater population. Instead, I chose purposive sampling so that I
could "establish trends, patterns, or themes in experiences, behaviours and understandings as
part of [an] analysis of a specific context, without seeking to make generalizable claims
about whole populations" (McGuirk & O'Neill, 2010, p. 205). When deciding how many
questionnaires to administer, I considered the population size of Prince George, the scope of

32

my study, and the resources I had available. According to the 2011 British Columbia Census
(BC Stats, 2015), Prince George is a city of almost 72,000 residents, 78% of whom are 19
years or older. A sample size of 1% of the adult population of Prince George would have
been about 560 participants. 560 questionnaires, however, were too many for the scope of my
project, my personal resources, and my capacity to analyse that much data. Instead, I chose to
administer 100 questionnaires. I believe 100 is an adequate number to establish themes and
behaviours, even if the results do not statistically represent the residents of Prince George as
a whole.
McGuirk and O 'Neill (2010) explain that purposive sampling "is commonly used
where sample selection for questionnaire respondents is made according to some known
characteristic, be it a social category .. ., a particular behaviour ... , or an experience" (p.
205). In the case of my study, participants were selected based on their presence at an
outdoor recreation site during the winter. The sampling strategies I used were convenience
sampling and opportunistic sampling (Bradshaw & Stratford, 2010). I sought out participants
at various locations around the city, which are listed in Table 1. I chose the locations based
on the types of activities commonly associated with the locations, as well as the park
designation assigned by the city, where applicable. The chosen outdoor recreation sites
included both free and fee-for-entry outdoor spaces in Prince George. I also chose to include
the Otway Nordic Ski Centre trail system, even though it straddles the city limits of Prince
George, because this site is easily accessible for day use and has the only maintained crosscountry ski and snowshoe trails in the area. I had to create an Other category for five
questionnaires because I was approached by individuals who were interested in my project
and wanted to take part.

33

Table 1

Questionnaire Sampling Sites, Their Common Activities and Designations, and the Number of
Questionnaires Administered at Each Site (sites are listed in alphabetical order)
PG Outdoor Rec
Sites

Site Activities

Park Designations

Camey Hill

Tobogganing

Toboggan hill

College Heights
Secondary School

Tobogganing

School ground

5

Cottonwood Island
Park

Dog walking (on leash)
Snowshoeing
Walking

Natural park
Trail and open space

10

Cranbrook Hill
Greenway

Cross-country skiing
Dog walking (off leash)
Snowshoeing
Walking

Forests for the World

Cross-country skiing
Dog walking (on leash)
Snowshoeing
Walking

Natural park
Trail and open space

10

Fort George Park

Play park
Snowshoeing
Walking

Destination park
Also connected to
River Trail

5

Ginter's Meadow

Dog walking (off leash)
Walking

Designated off-leash
park

5

Hart Highlands Ski
Hill

Alpine skiing

Privately-run

20

Moore ' s Meadow

Dog walking ( on and off
leash)
Snowshoeing
Walking

Natural park
Trail and open space
Includes designated
off-leash area

5

Otway Nordic Ski
Centre

Nordic skiing
Snowshoeing

Privately-run
Includes designated
off-leash area

20

Rainbow Park

Play park
Tobogganing
Walking

Destination park
Trail and open space

4

Other

NIA

NIA

5

Natural park
Trail and open space

# Questionnaires

10

34

I administered the questionnaires in February and March 2013 . I chose to visit the
sites mostly on weekends - late morning to mid-afternoon - to reach the most number of
people. Another factor that influenced my timing was making sure that someone else was
able to spend time at the sites with me, for personal safety reasons. It is possible that this
timing affected my results, as I might have reached a different demographic at different times
of the day, or even days of the week. I may have reached more seniors, for example, ifl had
been able to visit sites on weekdays.
When conducting the field work in the recreation spaces, I approached residents who
were present and asked if they were willing to participate in my study. I gave a brief
explanation of my project, and offered a copy of the Research Information Form, as found in
Appendix 1. As an inducement to complete a questionnaire, I offered them individuallywrapped chocolates. Many participants were interested in my study and asked questions that
I did not yet have answers to, but few chose to take a copy of the information letter.
The questionnaire was designed to answer my first three questions, that is, choice of
recreational locations, activities, and feelings about winter recreation in Prince George (see
Appendix 2). The questionnaire allowed me to gather a significant amount of data in a short
period of time (Creswell, 2009). This was important because of the very season-specific
nature of my topic; for example, residents would not have been interested in talking about
winter in July. The questions themselves were designed "to collect behavioural information"
(Robinson, 1998, p. 377) as well as "attitudes and opinions" (McGuirk & O'Neill, 2010, p.
192) of residents in the Prince George area.
I designed the questions to be open-style in order to give participants space to give
any answers they deemed relevant (McGuirk & O'Neill, 2010). I asked the questions and

35

recorded the answers myself. I took care not to influence the participants' responses. For
example, I did not suggest possible answers, or alter any of the questions. However, I
understand that some research participants might have tried to provide answers they thought I
was biased towards (Robinson, 1998). In order to avoid "satisficing behaviour", I kept the
questionnaire short, and I tried to keep the language simple but precise (McGuirk & O'Neill,
2010, p. 195; Robinson, 1998; Secor, 2010). I also turned what could have been closed
questions into open questions, giving participants a chance to provide more detail if they so
chose (McGuirk & O'Neill, 2010).
I also included three single answer questions at the end to get some demographic data
from participants (Robinson, 1998). These questions were not meant to be used to classify
participants, rather, I merely wanted to see if a trend emerged among the groups. The
demographic groupings I chose were gender, age and parental status. Gender not only
included f emale and male, but undeclared, so as to include participants who did not selfidentify as either of the two traditional genders. I based the age groupings on decades
because recreational activity levels have been shown to fluctuate, not simply decrease, with
age; Verbrugge, Gruber-Baldini, & Fozard (1996) demonstrated in a long-term study that
recreational activities decreased into participants ' 50s, then increased again in the 60 and 70age ranges, before decreasing again in the 80s. My last question was: Do you have children
under the age of 18 living at home with you? I believe, from personal experience as a parent,
that parents choose locations differently from non-parents, particularly when the children are
young. I was interested to know if parents chose recreational locations based on access to
facilities such as bathrooms or heated changing facilities .

36

I had originally planned to analyse the results of each question by entering them into
Excel spreadsheets. After completing the field work, an opportunity arose to use SPSS, so I
used that software instead. It became clear fairly quickly, though, that my inexperience with
designing questionnaires was posing challenges to both data entry and analysis. For example,
my first four questions were:
1. What are your three favourite outdoor sites for winter recreation in Prince
George?
2. What activities do you participate in at each of those sites?
3. What do like about those sites? (E.g., design features, facilities, natural areas,
location.)
4. What site improvements would you like to see for each of those sites for winter
use?
Without realising the potential problems, I designed the first four questions so that they
would each have up to three answers. This made entering the data into SPSS difficult, so I
was forced to renumber the questions and results to IA, IB, IC, 2A, 2B, 2C, etc. In addition,
each data unit had the potential to contain several responses; for example, 2A could include
snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, and walking. This was problematic in that I was not able
to extrapolate how many people snowshoed at a particular site because snowshoeing, crosscountry skiing and walking was recorded as one data unit, while snowshoeing and crosscountry skiing was recorded as a separate data unit.
Ultimately, all responses were entered as they were received, but I found that using
SPSS to extrapolate the data was not very useful. Instead, I printed all of the results on 48
legal-sized sheets, and cut and pasted the entire spreadsheet together. In order to isolate the

37

data for the top five outdoor sites, I assigned a colour to each one and coloured in all
responses related to each site. I also assigned colours to the different activities and circled
them on the spreadsheet. I did this so that I could count the number of times each activity
was mentioned. To go back to the earlier example of snowshoeing, cross-country skiing and
walking being one data unit and snowshoeing and cross-country skiing being another, SPSS
would not generate snowshoeing as an activity on its own. By using the colour-coding
system, I was able to manually sort the data and find out how many times snowshoeing was
mentioned as a response to a question, or for a particular site. The spreadsheet ended up
looking like a patchwork quilt! See Appendix 3 for a sample section of the spreadsheet.
I analysed the results of the open-ended questions using coding techniques. Cope
(2010) argues that qualitative coding is used for three main reasons: "data reduction,
organization and the creation of searching aids, and analysis" (p. 283). Because the openended questions in the public questionnaires asked for short answers, I was able to develop
"manifest" (obvious) and "descriptive codes" (Cope, 2010, p. 282 & 283) fairly quickly. For
questions 3 and 4, I was only interested in the results related to the five most popular sites. In
order to really get a sense of the responses for those sites and the resulting themes, I recorded
each response on a cue card and then sorted the individual words and phrases for themes. I
ended up with hundreds of cue cards for the results of the two questions and the five
favourite sites alone. Questions 5 - 9 were not quite as problematic for analysing in SPSS,
but the printed spreadsheet proved to be more revealing than were the software-generated
results. I also created cue cards for some of the other questions, such as the responses for
future recreational opportunities in question 7.

38

My complete analysis process included indexing, charting, mapping and categorising
(Kirby & McKenna, 1989; Ritchie & Spencer, 1994). I learned through this experience that
questionnaires are not easy to design well. I have come to better appreciate the professional
market researchers with whom I work. If I were to administer another questionnaire in the
future, I would definitely seek more assistance in designing the questions.
Site visits. The other part of my field work consisted of site visits to the favourite
outdoor recreation spaces. As mentioned earlier, I had originally planned to return to the
three most popular recreational sites, based on the results from my questionnaires. I felt that
the top three would give me a good sense of common design features and amenities to
compare to winter city design elements. However, five sites scored closely together and were
significantly higher than the others, so I decided to examine all five. They were: Otway
Nordic Ski Centre, Cranbrook Hill Greenway/Forests for the World, Hart Ski Hill,
Cottonwood Island Park, and the Ice Oval. When I revisited these sites, I looked at site
features and amenities, and I observed how people were using the spaces. I took notes and
photographs at each site to record my observations.
Afterward, I grouped and coded the site details from all five sites based on the five
basic elements of winter city design: blocking wind; capturing sunlight; using colour;
providing winter-appropriate infrastructure (such as places to pile snow, access to power for
lights, and fire pits); and, using light for night-time activities. I was interested to find how
many of the winter design features all five sites shared in common. For example, the parking
lots in all five sites were cleared of snow, which may seem trivial, but without this, many
users could not have gained access to the sites. Interestingly, all five sites also shared natural
wind-blocking features. A copy of the recording sheet can be found in Appendix 4. I also

39

grouped the activities that I observed people participating in at the sites. These included
activities the sites were designed for, such as skating, cross-country skiing and downhill
skiing, but also social activities, such as sitting in the sun, chatting and observing others. The
activities fell into five categories: active pursuits; artistic and nature-related pursuits;
socializing; basking in the sunshine; and, informal snow play. A full list of observed
activities can also be found in Appendix 4.

Content analysis. After interviewing participants and examining recreation sites, I
carried out a content analysis on City of Prince George documents related to city parks and
recreation. According to Krippendorff (1989), "probably the most wide-spread use of content
analysis is to infer the importance writers, producers, media, or even whole cultures assign to
particular subject-matter categories from the frequency or volumes with which such subject
matter is mentioned" (p. 404). However, Kohlbacher (2006) notes that there are limitations to
content analyses, including: being "concerned only with the lexicon of a text" (section 5.3,
para. 1); not being able to use the text document itself as the subject once the "relevant parts"
have been removed and analysed (section 5.3, para. 2); and, that replicating a mixed-methods
analysis "is a nearly impossible task" (section 5.3, para. 3).
Despite the drawbacks, Steimer (2001) posits that "content analysis is ... useful for
examining trends and patterns in documents" (para. 4), and Kohlbacher (2006) argues that it
is "especially suitable for case study research" (section 6, para. 1). As I wanted to know how
important and how well integrated considerations for winter recreation were in existing City
of Prince George policies, plans, guidelines, and brochures, conducting a content analysis
was appropriate. I used both text and images in the documents as sources of data analysis
(Krippendorff, 1989). I sampled city documents produced primarily within the last five to ten

40

years, and each document was a unit of analysis (Babbie, 1995). While some of the city
documents are not dated, I tried to find relevant documents that were as recent as possible.
The documents I chose addressed outdoor recreation in Prince George, and were produced
for both internal and external distribution, that is, policy and maintenance documents for city
staff and council, as well as maps and brochures produced for the public. I also looked at the
city' s parks web pages, all of which were accessed in January 2015. Table 2 provides a list of
all documents and web pages that were analysed for winter-related content. I did not include
the following city documents: Climate Sensitive Design for the City of Prince George; Prince
George Snow and Ice Control Policy; or, City of Prince George Council Procedure: Snow
and Ice Control. The reason for this is that those three documents target winter specifically,
and I wanted to see how winter was integrated generally into other city documents. I did,
however, look at them as part of the background reading and literature review.

41

Table 2

List of City ofPrince George Documents Analysed for Winter-Related Content
City Policies and Plans

City Brochures and Guides

City Web Pages

City of Prince George Official
Community Plan Bylaw No.
7281 , 2001

City of Prince George Park
and Trail Map: Get outside!
It's in our nature.

Community Foundation Park

City of Prince George Official
Community Plan Bylaw No.
8383, 2011

City of Prince George
Walking Trail Guide: Get
outside! It's in our nature.

Cottonwood Island Park

Prince George Parks and Open
Space Master Plan (2008)

People Pets and Parks:
Information, Etiquette and
Resources

City Wide Trail System
Master Plan ( 1998)
Community Recreation
Services Plan (2014)

Community Active Living
Guide (Parks pages only)
• Fall 2012/Winter 2013 (p.
54 - 57)
• Fall 2013/Winter 2014 (p.
52- 54)
• Fall 2014/Winter 2015 (p.
44 - 45 , 48)

Connaught Hill Park

Destination Parks
Forests for the World
Fort George Park
Moore's Meadow
Natural Parks
Parks
Rainbow Park
Trails and Open Spaces
Veterans Plaza
Winter in Parks

When analysing the documents, I used manifest and latent content analyses to look
for both linguistic and visual references to winter. Rourke, Anderson, Garrison and Archer
(2001) suggest that manifest content analyses are appropriate for easily identifiable content,
and that "the ease of coding makes it attractive for content analysis" (manifest content, para.
1). The limitations of manifest content, however, are that subtler meanings and linguistic
variations are missed (Rourke at al. , 2001). In order to capture the more inconspicuous
content, Rourke et al. (2001) argue that latent content analysis is more appropriate, as it
"(struggles) with the important (though hidden) [sic] facets of individual and social
42

cognition" (latent content, para. 2). Challenges that arise from latent content analyses include
relying on cues and catchwords, developing more sophisticated coding schemes, and
acknowledging the subjectivity of coders and the influences of their backgrounds and
experiences (Rourke et al., 2001).
Babbie (1995) argues that a combination of both manifest and latent content analyses
is the best method for ensuring both reliability and validity in content analysis research. Gray
and Densten (1998), though, warn against trying to directly compare manifest, or observable,
and latent, unobservable, variables. However, they also posit that if "a framework for
qualitative analysis was sufficiently flexible to incorporate additional categories when the
examination of data revealed extra themes", then the qualitative analysis could "(validate) the
findings from the quantitative study" (p. 429).
Hsieh and Shannon (2005) outline three approaches to qualitative content analysis:
conventional, where "categories and names flow from the data" (p. 1279); directed, in which
"researchers begin by identifying key concepts or variables as initial coding categories" (p.
1281); and, summative. They describe a summative content analysis approach as "starting
with identifying and quantifying certain words or content in text with the purpose of
understanding the contextual use of the words or content. This quantification is an attempt
not to infer meaning but, rather, to explore usage" (p. 1283). Hsieh and Shannon also
describe a summative approach as one where alternative and euphemistic terms are identified
and their contexts examined.
In my analysis, I chose to look for both manifest and latent terms, using a summative
approach. I relied heavily on manifest content analysis for a thorough review of key winter
terms, as their use was obvious within the documents. The linguistic signifiers that I searched

43

for within the documents were: winter, snow, ice, and other winter-related terms, such as

blizzard, skiing and skating (Dixon, 2010). I considered all linguistic parts of speech for each
term; for example, nouns, compound nouns, adjectives, and adverbs. For the initial scan, I
used an Excel sheet to record all incidences of each term and any other terms that arose; a
selection of the sheet can be found in Appendix 5.
Finding the three key terms within the documents was relatively easy, thanks to
modem computer search tools and electronic versions of documents. I copied and pasted
each sentence that contained a term into the Excel sheet, then recorded the number of times
the terms appeared, and on how many pages. I also recorded the total number of pages in a
particular document, to get an idea of how frequently a term was used within the document.
For the web pages, however, I only recorded if and how often the terms were used, as a web
page is not divided into sheets the same way documents are.
After the documents were surveyed, I created a Word document to record the actual
terms so that I could get a better idea of how the terms were used, and to code them; see
Appendix 6 for a selection of the table. For example, in the winter, during winter, during the

winter months all refer to winter as a season. Winter recreation activities and winter trail
walking have a different use in that winter clarifies the time of year that the particular
recreational activities take place. Finally, winter was also used as a descriptor, or reference,
for parks maintenance: in winter conditions, winter maintenance and winter close-out

services. However, terms like bundle up, lace 'em up, andjlujfy white stuff also refer to
aspects of winter, but are not explicit. In order to find these, a more latent analysis approach
was necessary, requiring a careful analysis of the text. Interestingly, they fell nicely into the
coding categories that were developed for winter, snow and ice.

44

I also counted the total number of photographs of outdoor scenes in each document,
then the number of outdoor winter scenes. These results were recorded on the spreadsheet as
shown in Appendix 5. Given that Prince George experiences winter for at least five months
of the year, I wanted to know if the images in city documents reflected a balanced approach
to seasonal images and activities. I suspected that the documents were more heavily weighted
towards portraying summer, and my research confirmed this. The actual numbers will be
discussed in the analysis section.
As well as determining if winter recreation needs were integrated into existing city
documents, I sought to establish whether or not patterns could be found in the analysis of
multiple documents (Dixon, 2010). I discovered that while the two official community plans
saw a significant increase in declaring Prince George a winter city, other policy and planning
documents do not yet reflect the new focus. Dixon (2010) argues that patterns can be
"apparent as a repeated absence of a signifier, rather than its presence" (p. 395). With this in
mind, I was not only looking for how often the signifiers appeared in documents, but also for
how often they did not. For example, no winter maintenance activities were listed in the
maintenance schedule of the Parks and Open Spaces Master Plan (City of PG, 2008). The
lack of winter photographs in all but one document is also noteworthy. The content analysis
gave me insight into long-term trends and patterns in policy, which I used to help inform the
interview questions.

Interviews. The third part of my field research was intended to triangulate the data
gathered from the questionnaires, site visits and content analysis. This comprised interviews
with key informants from the City of Prince George administration to get in-depth answers to
my fourth question: How does the City of Prince George plan for winter recreation? I framed

45

the questions for city staff based on my previous research results. I expected that the
interview responses would provide me with data that were not available elsewhere, give me
insight into behaviours, motivations and differing opinions within the city structure, and
allow the informants time to "reflect on their experiences and the opportunity to find out
more about the research project" (Dunn, 2010, p. 102). The questions can be found in
Appendix 7.
I chose the informants based on their positions and their abilities to provide
information relevant to my study area (Dunn, 2010; Secor, 2010). The key staff members
were chosen for their responsibilities involving recreation, planning, parks, and
communications. I sought out staff members from the following departments6 : Community
Services; Planning and Development; Engineering and Public Works; and, External
Relations. I contacted potential interviewees by e-mail, and provided a brief description of
my project, why I chose to approach them specifically, why I believed my research would
benefit them professionally, and how I would share my findings with them; a copy of theemail is found in Appendix 8. I also attached a copy of the Participant Information Letter and
Consent Form to the e-mail, which is in Appendix 9.
I was able to interview four participants from three departments. I also exchanged emails with a fifth staff member from a fourth department to get additional information about
five of the questions. This staff member was a potential interviewee, but had recommended I
speak to one of my other targeted informants instead. In the end, I was referred back to the

6 Because the City of Prince George administration is small, and I want to safe-guard the anonymity ofmy key

informants as much as possible, I am not including the divisions that they work in.

46

fifth staff member by two interviewees in order to clarify responses regarding parks
maintenance. The e-mail exchange occurred after all of the interviews had taken place.
The format for the interviews was structured interviews, with all participants being
asked the same questions (Dunn, 2010; Secor, 2010). The only exception was the e-mail
exchange, with only five of the questions being asked. The structured format allowed me to
compare the responses, and assume that differences among the responses were "real ones
rather than as a result of the interview situation itself' (Robinson, 1998, p. 413). I sent the
questions to the interviewees a week before the interview to give them time to prepare if they
needed it. Because some of the questions surrounded policies, I did not want to put
interviewees on the spot and make them uncomfortable or embarrassed for not knowing the
answer.
Before an interview started, I obtained informed consent, and asked each participant
if I could record the interview (Berg, 2001 ); the interview protocol can be found in Appendix
10. Audio recordings allowed for the most accurate records of the interviews, and for a
"natural conversational interview style" (Dunn, 2010, p. 119). There is always the danger of
making interviewees uncomfortable by putting a recording device on the desk (Dunn, 201 O);
however, I used my iPhone, which is a small, common-place device, and which seemed to be
easily accepted by the participants. I also took notes to record any important non-verbal data,
and to have a back-up in case of technical failure (Dunn, 2010).
I transcribed the interviews myself. Once a full transcription was completed, I wrote a
two-page summary of the interview, including any key quotes that I thought I might use in
the final write-up. The summary was sent to the participants for their review and potential
clarification (Kirby & McKenna, 1989). Before conducting the interviews, I had anticipated

47

that I could provide the participants with copies of statements within two weeks; this was a
gross underestimation on my part. I kept in touch with the interviewees, however, and they
were very understanding about allowing me more time.
When scheduling the interviews, I kept in mind that location and timing have an
impact on interview outcomes (Berg, 2001; Harvey, 2010; Secor, 2010). While some
participants may feel comfortable meeting at work, McDowell argues that others "may be
less willing to disclose confidential information or provide additional time, for fear of being
overheard or because their colleagues expect them to be performing other duties" (as cited in
Harvey, 2010, p. 201). Therefore, I gave the interviewees the choice of meeting in their
offices or in a public place. Participants were also given a choice of times to meet. Two
participants chose to participate in the interview together in a boardroom at City Hall.
Another met me in his office in City Hall, and yet another asked for a telephone interview
because of time constraints.
Robinson (1998) adds appearance and interview style to factors that play an important
role in putting participants at ease. There is mixed opinion about whether a researcher should
be strictly "professional," or whether a researcher should be "creative", treating the
interviewee as "a 'Goddess' of information and insight" (Dunn, 2010, pp. 114-115). I aimed
for a middle ground. I tried not to remain professionally detached from my participants, as I
believed this would have lead to an uncomfortable, distant relationship; however, being
overly friendly or familiar would have been equally as uncomfortable and insincere. In order
to set the tone, I dressed in business casual attire (Berg, 2001 ).
Finally, power dynamics had to be considered, simply because they exist in all human
relationships (Dowling, 2010). Dowling describes three typical power relationships that can

48

exist between the researcher and the participants: reciprocal, asymmetrical, and potentially
exploitative. I believe that I faced reciprocal power relationships in my interviews because I
interviewed professional staff from the City of Prince George. In my experience, people who
hold such positions are generally middle-class and educated, which put us on a fairly level
social standing. My past work experience has been within public-service, hierarchical,
bureaucratic organizations, giving me some understanding of different levels of power within
municipal structures. In fact, I am currently employed as a planner by the City of Edmonton,
so our professional positions were comparable. In addition, I offered to give my findings
back to the participants at the end of the study, which helped to balance the power scale by
providing them with a benefit for participating (Dowling, 2010). Interestingly enough, at the
conclusion of the interviews, all participants asked me about my experiences working for the
City of Edmonton, and we discussed how and why Edmonton's WinterCity Strategy has been
so successful.
The interview data were analysed with qualitative coding techniques. I assigned a
numeric code to the interviews, and an identification key was kept for my records. The openended questions from the interviews provided complex responses, so instead of manifest and
descriptive codes, I needed to develop "analytic codes," which are based on themes (Cope,
2010, p. 283). The analysis process included indexing, charting, mapping, and categorising
(Kirby & McKenna, 1989; Ritchie & Spencer, 1994). I recorded the interview responses in a
word-processing program, with a table for each question; a sample table is found in
Appendix 11. I started to develop codes with the first batch of completed interviews by
grouping data into patterns and themes (Kirby & McKenna, 1989). I was fully aware before
starting that changes to the initial themes needed to be made. After all, "nothing can be taken

49

for granted nor rigidly prearranged. So the classification is made after, not before, fieldwork"
(Okely, 1993, p. 24). Once a set of codes became somewhat fixed, I grouped the codes to
create a coding structure that could be used to go over the data again to "capture connections
that may have been missed the first (or second or third) time around" (Cope, 2010, p. 291).
Before the final analysis was made, I stepped back from the data for a few weeks so that I
could return to it with a "fresh outlook" (Kirby & McKenna, 1989, p. 150).
The research methodology and all of the methods that I have just discussed do not
stand alone in making my project successful; they go hand-in-hand with the considerations of
generalizability, rigour and ethics. The following section describes how I considered these
equally-important aspects while conducting my research. I also lay out my plans to share my
findings because "Knowledge not shared remains unknown" (Grabenstein, 2013, p. 139).

Generalizability
As mentioned earlier, I chose case study methodology for my research. Case studies
do not provide statistical generalizability, rather analytical, or theoretical, generalizability
(Baxter, 2010). That is, "when case studies are properly undertaken, they should not only fit
the specific individual, group, or event studied, but generally provide understanding about
similar individuals, groups, and events" (Berg, 2001, p. 232). Yin (1994) agrees, stating that
case studies are "generalizable to theoretical propositions and not to populations or
universes" (p. 10). Berg (2001) argues further that social scientists must accept that "human
behavior is predictable" (p. 232). From there, he continues, it is a small step to conclude that
all case studies are valuable, and therefore, generalizable (Berg, 2001).
People adapt to the climate they live in (Knez & Thorsson, 2008). How they make
choices regarding the location of their urban winter recreational activities, however, is not

50

well understood. Since many cities lie in the northern zone, I expect the data collected in this
research study will be of interest to planners, local governments and outdoor recreation
groups in northern urban areas. Although the activities themselves may not transfer directly, I
believe the data on how the participants choose the locations for recreational activities will be
generalizable to other urban areas.

Rigour
The means of ensuring rigour in research has been the subject of much debate. Baxter
and Eyles (1997) postulate that "the criteria of credibility, transferability, dependability, and
conformability for establishing rigour are useful general principles for guiding qualitative
research" (p. 521). Bailey, White and Pain (1999), however, counter that a checklist is too
stringent, and call for a more analytic framework based on grounded theory that allows for
more "creativity in research processes" (p. 169). Bradshaw and Stratford (2010) describe
rigour simply as a "means of establishing trustworthiness of our work" (p. 77). Others prefer
instead to use the terms "validity" (Creswell, 2009, p. 190) and "trustworthiness" (Mansvelt
& Berg, 2010, p. 351 ). However, just what constitutes validity itself in regard to qualitative

research is also contentious among scholars.
Traditional concepts of internal and external validity are associated with quantitative
research (R. B. Johnson, 1997; Maxwell, 1992). Gibbert, Ruigrok and Wicki (2008) argue
instead for three types of validity in case study research: internal, that applies at "the data
analysis phase" (p. 1466) and relies on pattern matching and triangulation; construct, which
refers "to the extent to which a procedure leads to an accurate observation of reality" (p.
1466); and, external, which relies on analytical generalization and how it applies to theory,
not a population. They further posit that the three types of validity are linked and

51

hierarchical, "with construct and internal validity acting as a condition sine qua non for
external validity" (p. 1468).
Rowley (2002) and Tellis (1997) support the notion of construct, internal and
external validity. Rowley points out, though, that internal validity is "for explanatory or
causal studies only, and not for descriptive or exploratory studies" (p. 20). R. B. Johnson
(1997) and Maxwell (1992) support three different types of validity for qualitative research:
descriptive, referring to how accurately descriptive information is reported, including not
omitting information; interpretive, which is concerned with what the subject or action being
studied actually means to the participants; and, theoretical, referring to how well the how and
why of a phenomenon is discussed.
In order to establish validity and rigour in my research, I collected data from multiple
sources (members of the public, my own observations, municipal documents, and municipal
staff), by way of multiple methods (questionnaires, site visits, content analysis, and
interviews) (Baxter & Eyles, 1997; Bradshaw & Stratford, 2010; Creswell, 2009). I followed
Bradshaw and Stratford's (2010) recommendation of checking "processes and interpretations
with [my] supervisors" and the interview transcription "text with [my] research participant
community" (p. 77).
Researchers ' own ideologies, philosophies, political persuasions and personal
histories are never divorced from the research process (Bailey et al. , 1999; Bradshaw &
Stratford, 2010; Dowling, 2010). The question of whether the researcher him/herself is an
insider or outsider in the process must be considered (Dowling, 2010; Katz, 1994). Katz
(1994) argues that "it is crucial that social scientists inhabit a difficult and inherently unstable
space of betweenness" (p. 67). Acknowledging that state of betweenness and how it affects

52

the research is best managed through critical reflexivity (Creswell, 2009; Dowling, 2010;
England, 1994). I chose my topic because I love to be outside in winter. I am also more
comfortable in an urban setting, though I do enjoy excursions to more remote locations. I
grew up in Edmonton, AB, another northern winter city, but lived close to the 60th parallel
before moving to Prince George. After six years in Prince George, I returned to Alberta to
join the team that is working on Edmonton's ten-year WinterCity Strategy.
I brought to my research a love of outdoor sports that I now enjoy with my two
school-aged children. Thanks to an aging parent, I am also becoming more aware of the
inconveniences that winter brings (e.g., the dangers of falling on icy sidewalks, and less
tolerance of cold). My experience with Edmonton's WinterCity Office has also expanded my
understanding of municipal administration, city-wide decision-making, and public
engagement. I believe that my research and work experience have enriched each other.
However, as the researcher, I strove to keep my own preferences for the joys of winter and
my own favourite recreational spots separate from the data that emerged. Because I knew my
study area, I also worked hard to not make suggestions if participants asked for assistance
with identification of locations. I continued to reflect on my own preferences and biases
throughout the research process.
Ethical Considerations
O'Connell-Davidson and Layder define research ethics as "the conduct ofresearchers
and their responsibilities and obligations to those involved in the research, including
sponsors, the general public and most importantly, the subjects of the research" (as cited in
Dowling, 2010, p. 28). Dowling (2010) outlines "privacy, informed consent, and harm" as
the three main matters of concern for qualitative researchers (p. 28). Creswell (2009) points

53

out that ethical considerations continue into the writing and distribution phases. I tried my
best to use language that was not biased against or toward any participants, I did not
"suppress, falsify, or invent findings," and I provided the interview participants with a chance
to clarify their statements (Creswell, 2009, p. 92).
In my research, I dealt with matters of privacy in several ways. The public
questionnaires were numbered, but participants were not asked for any identifying personal
information. The three questions regarding gender, age and parental status do not allow for
identification of individuals. The interview transcripts and related data were also numbered.
Because Prince George is a small city and I selected key informants within the city structure,
it is possible that someone could identify one of the interview participants simply by virtue of
being familiar with the locale (ESRC National Centre for Research Methods, 2006). I
advised participants of the situation, and let them know that while I could not guarantee their
anonymity, I would do what I could to mask their identities within my reporting. In addition,
as stated above, I provided each interview participant with a summary and key quotes from
the interviews. This gave the participants an opportunity to amend any statements they felt
needed to be clarified or might have reflected negatively on them.
As mentioned earlier, informed consent was obtained before questionnaires were
filled out. I had an information sheet about my research available for all questionnaire
participants, and I answered any questions they had (Dowling, 2010). Since the
questionnaires were voluntary, it can be argued that the simple act of choosing to answer the
questions implied consent (Berg, 2001). However, after providing information on my
research project, I asked each interested member of the public for oral confirmation that
he/she was willing to participate in the study. Before I began the interviews with city staff,

54

participants were required to read and sign the previously-mentioned Information Letter and
Consent Form. All completed questionnaires, transcripts, copies of the audio recordings,
consent forms, field notes and contact information were kept, locked, in my graduate
supervisor's office on the UNBC campus. Two years after this thesis has been defended, all
personally-identifiable data will be destroyed.
Dowling (2010) argues that "your research should not expose yourself or your
informants to harm - physical or social" (p. 29). My questions did not delve into matters that
could cause psychological or social harm; however, one city employee wanted further
clarification about how the data would be used and published before agreeing to take part in
the interview. I was able to answer all of the questions and ease the concerns by discussing
my project off the record. The employee agreed to only answer the questions that fell within
the purview of his/her position with the city. I assured the employee that I did not want any
participant to feel that answering a question would put his/her employment in jeopardy
(Berg, 2001 ). As a result, some of the questions from that interview were left unanswered.
While administering questionnaires at the recreation sites, there was a potential for
physical harm due to weather conditions, in particular, frostbite and hypothermia. These
injuries might have been sustained if a participant or I were standing still for too long in the
cold or the wind. In order to alleviate the potential risk of physical harm, I:
•

kept the questionnaire short;

•

did not conduct my study on very cold and/or windy days;
dressed appropriately for the weather;

•

carried a thermos with a hot drink;
had Hot Shots for my mittens; and,

55

•

took breaks to warm up whenever necessary.

As for my personal safety, all field work took place in public places. When I went to the
more remote sites, I took a cell phone with me, and my children accompanied me. The
interviews took place at City Hall and over the telephone.

Distribution
I started a research project blog that is hosted at blogs.unbc.ca. After participants
filled out the questionnaire, I provided them with the blog address if they were interested. I
also offered participants my contact information if they wished to have results sent directly to
them. However, very few participants took the information. Maintaining the blog site was
more time-consuming than I expected. It was also challenging to come up with appropriate
content while analysing the data, as I had nothing to report on during that time.
City staff who participated in the project were given the option ofreceiving a
summary report and/or a copy of my thesis, and I also offered to hold a presentation on the
findings. One of the city staff members has asked for a summary report and a possible
presentation. After this thesis is defended, I am also planning to present my findings at a
conference (provincial or national), and in at least one journal article.

56

Chapter 4 Results
In this chapter, I will describe the results that I received from the multiple avenues of

field work and the content analysis. The field work comprised questionnaires with residents,
interviews with city staff, and park site visits. The content analysis was conducted on city
documents, both internal policy documents and publications designed for residents. The
results are discussed in terms of themes that emerged from all sources in order to triangulate
the data. When describing the results of the questionnaires, I will list common themes and
phrases in italics to show that multiple participants provided very similar comments. Unique,
individual comments will be presented in quotations, and will be referenced by participant
number. Similarly, for the interviews, the quotes will be referenced by interviewee number to
protect the informants' identities. Note that interview one had two interviewees, and they will
be listed as I-IA and I-lB for clarity.
Research Participants

When I administered the questionnaires at outdoor winter recreation sites, 100 park
users were generous with their time and participated in my research. The 100 participants
covered a broad age range, and over half self-declared to be between the ages of 30 - 49. No
participants reported being in their 70s or 80s. When compared to the same age groupings of
the general population of Prince George (BCStats, 2015), as shown in Figure 8, the 30-39
and 40-49 age groups are somewhat over-represented, and the others are slightly underrepresented. I expected some inequality in the demographic results, as I used convenience
sampling and had to rely on participants who were "available and willing to take part"
(Kitchenham & Pfleeger, 2002, p. 19). While convenience sampling has its drawbacks
because it is non-probabilistic, it is useful in populations like mine that are "hard to identify"

57

(Kitchenham & Pfleeger, 2002, p. 20). I am satisfied with the age grouping results, though I
am surprised that I did not have even one participant over the age of 70. It is interesting to
note that in the telephone survey conducted in preparation for the Community Recreation
Services Plan Background Document, the 18-34 age group was well-represented, the 35-54
group was over-represented, and the 55+ age group was under-represented (City of PG,
2014c).

18-29

.
Ji . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

--~~~~~~~~~~· 15

·············•J
r-

30 -39 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .~1U7~~~~~~~~--I 34
Q)

i 40-49

~

<~ 50-59

19
~ ~ - - - - . 27

..........................
... 19
U

1_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _•

. . 13
60-69 .. . . . . . . . . . . . .
1
.
- - - - - - - 11
70+

0

0

10
5
10
15
20
25
30
Percentage of General Population and Questionnaire Participants

• General Population (BCStats, 2015)

35

• Questionnaire Respondents

Figure 8. Percentage of general population of Prince George and of questionnaire respondents by age
range.

According to BCStats (2015), the population of Prince George is almost evenly
divided between men and women. My participants were 60% women and 38% men, and one
participant chose not to declare gender, while another chose not to provide demographic
information. My results are not much different from the city's telephone survey for the
recreation services plan, which had 66% women respondents and 34% men (City of PG,

58

2014c). One of the reasons for this lack of gender parity in my study, I believe, is that when I
approached couples, it was more common for the woman to agree to participate than the
man. I did not record the frequency of this occurrence, as I did not see it emerge as a
recurring theme until it was too late to record the number of instances.
Fifty-four of the participants reported having children under the age of 18 living at
home. Comparing these statistics to the general population is difficult because of the way that
BCStats (2015) breaks down households with children by number of household units, marital
status of parents, and families with one or two parents. My intention with asking participants
if they had children at home was to see if their choices of outdoor spaces and activities
differed from those of non-parents. As I did not intend to apply the results to the general
population of Prince George, I will not be comparing my results of parental status with those
ofBCStats.
The city staff members that I interviewed worked in the departments of planning and
development, community services, and external relations. I also corresponded by e-mail with
someone who works in the Engineering and Public Works Department. Almost all of the
informants had worked for the City of Prince George for over ten years, the exception being
one who had been employed by the city for just over a year and a half.
Winter Identity, Policy and Promotion
In order to get a better understanding of how winter affects the local identity, city
policy, and promotion of outdoor recreation in Prince George, I explored multiple avenues of
inquiry. City residents provided input on identity and promotion, while staff members were
able to comment on all three areas.

59

Prince George's winter city identity. I asked city staff if winter is part of Prince
George's identity, but I did not pose the same question to residents. However, participants
commented on their own that winter is a key part of Prince George' s identity, and city staff
agreed. While some participants suggested winter might be too long, or felt like
questionnaire participant P-96 that they "aren't winter people", many remarked on how
pretty winter is, and that more people needed to get out and enjoy it. Participant P-37 even
said, "Prince George is a good winter city". City staff interviewee I-3 pointed out to me that
the city coat of arms contains two snowflakes. When I checked the city website for
information, I found that the city flag has two snowflakes as well, and the badge has one
(City of PG, 2013e). I was also reminded that the city campaigned on the slogan We Are
Winter in its bid to host the 2015 Canada Winter Games. Interviewee I-IA stressed that
"winter is considered in all planning, designing, and managing of public spaces, such as
parks and the public realm of streetscapes".
I-IA also explained that winter distinguishes Prince George from many other BC
communities of a similar size, which are mostly found in the Lower Mainland or in the much
warmer Okanagan Valley. As a result, Prince George has a different budget process from
other similar-sized BC communities because snow removal and ice control take up huge
parts of the annual budget discussion and allocation. In fact, when comparing its policies to
those of other municipalities, the City of Prince George tends to look at smaller northern
communities in BC, or even to northern communities in other provinces.
When I asked how the city embraces and reflects its winter identity in its
publications, all staff informants mentioned the Community Active Living Guide. They all
believed that the guide does a good job of providing information about winter activities and

60

events, and that it contains a good amount of winter imagery. After mentioning the guide, I-3
said she believes winter "is reflected more so in community services publications" than in
other city documents. According to the city informants, there is no overall policy or
guideline to outline how winter should be reflected in city documents. The communications
office does not have the staff resources to support the creation of publications across the
corporation, so each department is responsible for producing its own documents. The
communications office is still fairly new, has limited staff, and is focused on media relations,
social media, digital communications, and issues management. While it cannot produce
documents for other departments, it has been building a library of new images, including
winter ones, for all departments to use.
At the end of one of the interviews, I-lA said that winter is addressed in a number of
policy documents. She gave me copies of sections of the following documents: 2011 Official
Community Plan; Community Recreation Services Plan; Prince George Active
Transportation Plan; Prince George Parks and Open Spaces Master Plan; and, Climate
Sensitive Design for the City of Prince George. I had already reviewed all of the documents
as part of the preparation for the interviews, so the fact that I received copies of them from a
staff member confirmed that I had been looking at the right documents.

Winter in policy. To get an even better understanding of how Prince George's winter
identity was reflected in the policy documents, I conducted a content analysis for winterrelated terms and photographs in the current and previous OCPs, and in documents that relate
to community recreation, parks, and trails. As it turns out, I had chosen all but two of the
documents that were given to me by the staff member. I chose not to analyse the Prince
George Active Transportation Plan in detail because it discusses trails as transportation

61

corridors, not as recreation spaces. The Climate Sensitive Design for the City of Prince
George document is more of a design guideline than a policy document, and it discusses
winter design in detail. As a result, I did not believe that it needed to be analysed for winterrelated content. I also chose to look at not only the 2011 Official Community Plan, but the
2001 edition as well, to see if there had been any changes in how winter was discussed.

Official Community Plan, 2001 and 2011. In British Columbia, Official Community
Plans (OCPs) provide a vison for the community, and are "a statement of objectives and
policies to guide decisions on planning and land use management" (Government of British
Columbia, n.d., para. 1). Prince George completed its last two OCPs in 2001 and 2011. I
began with these documents to see if winter was recognized as part of Prince George's
identity, and how winter conditions were planned for.
Prince George's 2001 OCP is 109 pages long, and contains the terms winter three
times, snow four times, and does not use ice once. The Prince George 2011 OCP is 50%
bigger, but has a six-fold increase in the use of the same three terms. In addition,
considerations for winter elements and conditions are also addressed. The most notable
change is that the OCP 2011 expressly identifies Prince George as a winter city. Not only is
the term winter city used four times, but winter city concerns, winter city design , and winter

design approaches are also referred to throughout the document. The OCP 2001 contains 14
outdoor photos, only one of which is a winter scene. The OCP 2011 is a much more visuallystimulating document, with 89 photos of the outdoors. Fifteen of the 89 photos were taken in
winter, but only one of them contains people enjoying being outside in winter.

Prince George Parks and Open Spaces Master Plan (2008). This document outlines
the state of the parks, open spaces, and recreational facilities in Prince George, and provides

62

recommendations for future development. Winter is first introduced to the document as a
negative force: "Winter has a strong presence here and can present challenges relating to
heavy snow loads, freeze/thaw cycles, and river ice jams" (City of PG, 2008, p. 5). Winter
recreation and winter activities are only addressed directly in the document once, in the
following sentence: "Winter recreational opportunities are also pursued at the various sliding
hills, ice skating rinks, cross-country skiing at various trails and the Otway Ski Centre, and
downhill skiing at the Hart Highlands Winter Club, amongst other winter recreational
interests that occur within the Park and Open Space System" (City of PG, 2008, p. 9).
However, the Ice Oval and the Otway Nordic Ski Club are listed several times each in the
text as part of the inventory of recreational facilities.
Appendix C: Parks Service Level Program outlines maintenance and service levels
for parks and open spaces. No winter-specific maintenance or services, such as snow clearing
or grooming, are listed for any parks or open spaces. However, Section 6.2, Parkland
Development, outlines general principles that should be followed when developing future
facilities and amenities in parks and open spaces in Prince George. The last principle states,
"four season interest should be considered with an emphasis on winter considerations,
amenities and supportive facilities" (City of PG, 2008, p. 57). However, of the 80 photos of
parks and outdoor spaces in the document, only three represent winter. Two of the photos
contain people, but little diversity is shown as both portray teens.

City Wide Trail System Master Plan (1998). Unlike the previous document, this
master plan acknowledges winter from the outset, and stresses that "winter use (is) an
important aspect of a trail system in a northern city like Prince George, which may have
snow on the ground for five or six months of the year" (Brockington, 1998, p. 5). Indeed, the

63

document states that "the City Trail System Master Plan must consider how the trails will be
used and managed in winter to fulfil the goal of being a relevant document" (Brockington,
1998, p. 22). This document includes a section about winter use of the trails which discusses
maintenance, accessibility, trail width, and snow storage sites. Considerations for walking,
jogging, snowshoeing, and cross-country skiing are also addressed. Suggestions are given for
how to determine which trails could, or should, be cleared for winter use, for example, wellused routes, and trails that children take to school. No photos are included in this document.

Community Recreation Services Plan (2014). This plan was developed to "provide a
comprehensive strategy and guiding framework for the recreation facilities, programs and
services that are delivered or supported by the City" (City of PG, 2014b, p. 3). Indoor and
outdoor recreation facilities are listed and assessed for all seasons. However, the first
sentence in section 5.1: Indoor Recreation Facilities states, "Indoor recreation facilities such
as pools, arenas and gymnasiums provide a range of recreational activities within a controlled
climate, which is especially important during winter months" (p. 39). Several times
throughout the document, the importance of having indoor facilities for use during winter
months is mentioned. Reasons given include winter conditions being a barrier to outdoor
recreation for some residents, and the need for training space for sports groups. While not
intentional, the overall impression is that winter is best enjoyed indoors.
The document does contain a section on "Facilities Used During the Winter Season"
(City of PG, 2014b, p. 106), but this is hard to find. The outdoor facilities section does not
appear in the table of contents, and is embedded under 5.2: Outdoor Recreation Facilities,
sub-section K: Other Outdoor Recreation Facilities (p. 106). The outdoor recreation spaces
that are listed and discussed are: Ice Rinks; Prince George Outdoor Ice Oval; Otway Nordic

64

Ski Centre; Tobogganing Hills; and, Winter Park Trails (pp. 106-108). The 136-page
document is light on photos, containing only seven, and, of these, one shows a child enjoying
skating. The photo is cropped so tightly that it is difficult to tell if it was taken outside or
inside, but a shadow appears to suggest that the child is on an outdoor rink in winter.

Promotion of winter recreation. In addition to producing policy documents, the city
produces publications for residents. As mentioned above, all of the staff members that I
interviewed listed the Community Active Living Guide as the primary channel for promoting
winter recreation, both indoor and outdoor, offered by the city and community groups. The
city's recreation and cultural services also use the city' s website and social media channels to
relay information, with assistance from the communications office.
The city sometimes helps to promote events put on by its external partners, such as
community associations, the Ice Oval Society, and the Otway Nordic Ski Centre. However,
the communications office relies on internal departments that work with the external groups
to let them know what is happening in the community. Occasionally, the communications
office runs a joint campaign with a large external organization to promote an event or
strategy, like the PG Parks Initiative with Northern Health. However, small organizations
tend to be run by volunteers, so co-ordinating promotion of their events with the city can be
difficult, if not impossible.
Participants, however, remarked that there is not enough promotion of winter
recreation. I received several comments calling for better promotion and advertising of what
is actually available. As participant P-28 said, "I hear about indoor events, but not outdoor
events". Specific information that the respondents would like to see on the City of Prince
George website included where to rent cross-country skis and maps of snowshoeing trails.

65

More promotion of tobogganing hill locations, what's available for children, and better
advertising of events and activities were also desired. One participant suggested that school
gym teachers would be a good resource for promoting winter recreation and activities.
In order to get a better understanding of how well winter recreation is promoted by
the city, I undertook a content analysis on publications produced for residents, again looking
at key winter terms and photographs. Because city staff put so much emphasis on the
Community Active Living Guide, I looked at three years' worth of editions to see if there
were any noticeable changes in promotion. I also reviewed recreation- and park-specific
brochures, pamphlets, and web pages.
Community Active Living Guide. Twice annually, the City of Prince George
produces the Community Active Living Guide. This publication lists city recreation services
and aquatic courses, as well as community-run activities, organized sports, and recreation
and leisure courses. I looked at the city parks pages from the Fall/Winter guides for
2012/2013, 2013/2014, and 2014/2015.
The heading for the parks pages in all three issues is EXPLORE what Prince George
has to offer. It 's in our Nature! (City of PG, 2012, 2013a, 2014a). They also each have a
main parks page that encourages residents to get outside and play in parks, and suggests
activities such as skiing, building snowmen, skating, tobogganing, snowshoeing, and taking
dogs for walks. The main park page in all three editions also directs readers to the city
website for more information on toboggan hill locations and walking trail maps. The
2014/2015 guide is the only one of the three that suggests particular trails for winter use, and
lists toboggan hill and safety information.

66

The majority of the photos for the parks pages in all three guides are of outdoor
winter scenes. The 2012/2013 guide includes nine outdoor photos, seven of which are of
winter. All six outdoor photos are winter scenes in the 2013/2014 guide. In the 2014/2015
guide, a few more fall photos are included, but eight of the eleven photos are of winter
activities.

Trail maps and parks guides. I found three documents produced by the city for
residents that provide information about trails and parks, two of which contain similar
information. The City of Prince George (n.d.b) Park and Trail Map is a two-sided, city-wide,
folded map that includes an activity matrix to illustrate which activities are appropriate for
which parks. The City of Prince George (n.d.d) Walking Trail Guide is a booklet with trail
information and illustrated maps for 19 trails and parks. However, very little promotion of
winter use of trails and parks is present in either document. The trail map lists cross-country
skiing and snowshoeing in the matrix, and suggests in the text that Moore's Meadow is a
good place for cross-country skiing and snowshoeing (City of PG, n.d.b). The same comment
is made about Moore's Meadow in the trail guide (City of PG, n.d.d), but no other winter
activities or winter use of parks is suggested. The only other reference to winter in the trail
guide is that "Connaught Hill Park is closed to vehicular traffic during winter months" (City
of PG, n.d.d, p. 6).
The third document is called People, Pets and Parks: Information, etiquette and
resources (City of PG, n.d.c). This tri-fold brochure contains information on the three offleash parks in the city. No winter-specific language is used, either positive or negative;
however, the visual layout of the brochure suggests multi-season use of the parks. Of the
seven photos of dog parks in the People, Pets and Parks brochure, four are winter scenes, and

67

are all displayed prominently on the inside of the brochure. The trail map and booklet
discussed above each contain eight and 38 photos respectively, but neither of them has a
single winter photo.

City parks webpages. The City of Prince George parks webpages are generally very
summer-focused. The main page contains links to ten categories of parks (City of PG,
2013d), one of which is Winter In Parks. However, there are only links from two individual
parks pages to this one. The Winter In Parks page is organized into four sections that provide
information on cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, tobogganing, and winter trails (City of
PG, 2013f). The cross-country skiing and snowshoeing sections each contain a list of parks
appropriate to those activities. The sledding/tobogganing section lists toboggan hill locations
and safety information. The winter trails section is the most comprehensive, with an
encouraging message to use the trails in winter. Hyperlinks are provided near the bottom of
the page for a park and trail map, a list of parks, and a tobogganing hill map.
The city parks web pages in general are very light on winter images, although, as is to
be expected, the Winter In Parks page contains winter photos. However, of the five images,
three appear to be stock photos, including two of cross-country skiing and snowshoeing
equipment; the tobogganing hill and dog park photos could have been taken in Prince
George. I only found two other winter images in the thirteen pages that I reviewed: one on
the main parks page, and one to represent Wilson Park on the Natural Parks page (City of
PG, 2013c). Given that the city has a specific webpage for winter activities in city parks, I
was interested to see how many of the parks identified for winter recreation were named in
the top five most popular parks according to my questionnaire findings. As it turns out, only
one of the five most popular winter recreation sites is a city park. Further discussion of the

68

results of the content analysis, and how the findings fit into the existing literature,
particularly in terms of recreation promotion and city branding, will be discussed in the
analysis section.
Outdoor Winter Recreation Sites
This section describes which site features participants were attracted to in the
wintertime, which features did not attract participants, and suggestions for site improvements
that I received while administering the questionnaires. I will also discuss the self-reported
activities that participants engage in at sites, as well as the activities that I observed during
my site visits. Finally, city guidelines and considerations for winter design in parks spaces
will be discussed along with my observations of the sites.
Most popular and unpopular sites. I asked participants to list their top three
favourite outdoor winter recreation sites, and to tell me if they avoided any sites in winter. A
few participants only listed one or two preferences, but the vast majority listed their three
favourite sites. In all, 32 recreation sites within Prince George were listed as favourites by
participants. The results are shown in Figure 9. Note that Fort George Park was renamed
Lheidli T'enneh Memorial Park after my field research was completed. Because my notes and
the responses I received all mention Fort George Park, I will continue to refer to it as such in
this thesis.

69

Otway Nordic Ski Centre

44

Cranbrook Hill Greenway & Forests for the .. !mm::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::i:mmmmmmmm• 40
Hart Ski Hill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
Cottonwood Island Park

25

PG Ice Oval

25

Moore's Meadow

12

Rainbow Park

10

College Heights Secondary School

10

Fort George Park

10

Ginter's Meadow

10

Community Rinks

8

Camey Hill

4

River Trails

4

Bear Meadows
Civic Centre Rink
Ferguson Lake
Otway Road
Backyard
Backyard Hockey Rink
Connaught Hill
Duchess Dog Park
End of Domano
Wilson Park
Moran Park
Neighbourhood
Neighbourhood Park
Pidemy Park
Pidemy & Foothills Cut Blocks
Scales Area

Toboggan Hills
University Hill
Valleyview Reservoir
0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

45

50

Number of Respondents

Figure 9. Recreation sites listed by questionnaire respondents.

In Figure 9, Cranbrook Hill Greenway and Forests for the World are combined. It
became clear to me very quickly that the users thought of, and used, the two sites as if they
70

were one. I collected questionnaire data at a trail head in each of the two sites, and in several
cases participants referred to where they were by the name of the other recreation area. I
believe the reason for this is that the two areas are adjacent to each other, and the trails are
interconnected. Some participants even talked about parking a vehicle at one site, driving a
second vehicle to the other site, and hiking back to the first vehicle.
As can be seen in Figure 9, five sites stand out as being much more popular than the
others. The popularity of these sites was reinforced by the fact that only six out of the 100
participants did not mention any of the top five sites in their responses. In addition, eleven
participants listed three of the five sites, 46 participants listed two, and 3 7 listed one. Because
of these data, I decided to study the responses and site features of the top five recreation
areas, instead of the top three as I had planned.
The six participants mentioned above who did not list any of the five most popular
sites in their responses all reported having children under the age of 18 living at home. The
favourite sites of those six parents included local toboggan hills, Fort George Park, the Civic
Centre Rink, and an area in the Hart. Their reasons for choosing these sites were primarily
convenience of location and safety of their children.
While it is important to understand why people are drawn to particular recreation
sites, it is equally important to understand why they actively avoid other sites. I asked
participants if they avoided any particular sites in winter, and if so, why. Twenty-five
participants provided a response to this question, six of whom said that while there are sites
that they do not use in winter, they did not have a compelling reason for avoiding the areas.
For them, it was more about having other favourite sites, or taking part in activities that were
better-suited to particular recreation areas. Nineteen participants offered responses that were

71

more descriptive, and three of the nineteen offered reasons for avoiding more than one site.
The sites that were named are found in Figure 10. Other respondents, however, did not
provide specific sites, but rather had more general reasons for not using sites, and these
reasons are examined in the next section.

Moore's Meadow

5

Play parks & playgrounds

4

LC Gunn Park

2

Rainbow Park toboggan hill

2

vi

Cottonwood Island Park

2

C:

0

Fort George Park

2

....

Parks with unploughed access

2

0

Civic Centre Rink

E"'

-~
0

<.)

~
0

Wilson Park

0

Streets and sidewalks

0

Snowmobile trails

Oil
....
0

0

<.)

C:

·;::
i:i..

Ice Oval
Local ski hills
Trails at the end of Ospika Blvd
Trails off Foothills Blvd
Isolated places
0

2

3

4

5

6

• Number of responses

Figure 10. Recreation sites actively avoided by participants during the winter.

Site attractors, deterrents, and suggestions for improvement. I asked participants
what attracted them to their favourite sites and if they had suggestions for improvements,
why they avoided other sites, and what kinds of activities they engaged in at the sites. The
responses for the attractive features for each of the five top sites were grouped and coded. As
can be seen in Table 3, similar themes emerged for the different sites. Interestingly,

72

participants' suggestions for site improvements, as well as some reasons for avoiding sites,
fell into the same categories.

Table 3
Number of Times Attractive Features Were Mentioned by Participants for the Five Most-Popular
Winter Outdoor Recreation Sites in Prince George, BC

Attractive
features

Otway
n=44

Hart Ski Hill
n=28

CHG/FFTW
n=39

Ice Oval
n=25

Cottonwood
n=25

Location

31

30

22

22

15

Trails

30

24

Nature

24

27

Community

15

Facilities

15

Quietness

11

8

Beauty

10

10

8

Dogs

7

4

3

Maintenance

6

Exercise

4

Affordability

2

Recreation

1

Other

10

19
5

20

5

4

9

4

7

5

2

2

9
3

9

2

4

2
22*

5

Note. Cranbrook Hill Greenway/Forests for the World (CHG/FFTW).

* 19 of the 22 Other comments for the Hart Ski Hill related to the facility being a good place for
children and/or a good place to learn to ski.
Location. Location was one of the top three reasons given for visiting each of the five
sites. Comments included terms such as close to town/home, convenient, in town, closest ski

hill, central, easy to get to, and easy access.
Nature. Nature was listed as an important factor for visiting all sites except the Hart
Ski Hill. Common words and phrases that were used to describe the natural setting included:
73

outdoors, sunshine, wildlife, a sense that you 're leaving town, in the woods, and beautiful
scenery. Participants also gave more descriptive comments, such as P-43 who said, "I feel
like I'm in the middle of nowhere", P-88 who remarked, "It's nice along the river", and P-93
who "(likes) being outside in the fresh air".

Community. Social aspects were important reasons for participants to choose four of
the sites. Family-related comments, such as family-friendly, good for all ages, and everyone
can do it were given for the Otway Nordic Ski Centre, the Hart Ski Hill, and the Ice Oval.
Safe for children was mentioned at both Cottonwood Island Park and the Hart Ski Hill.
Friendly was also mentioned at the Nordic and downhill ski centres to describe both patrons
and staff.
The idea of a local community was expressed for both the Otway Nordic Ski Centre
and Cottonwood Island Park, with the terms sense of community, regular people (meaning
those who frequented the park on a regular basis), and walking community. A sense of loss of
community was also expressed by P-95 at Cottonwood Island Park, who said that the social
atmosphere was "different before the paths were ruined by the flood", referring to the ice jam
flood in winter 2007 /2008 that washed out many of the trails and bridges in the park.
Trails. The importance of the trail networks was offered for three of the sites. The
cross-country ski trails were the second reason, after convenient location, for visiting the
Otway Nordic Ski Centre. While this may seem like an obvious reason for people to visit the
centre, it is important because cross-country skiing and snowshoeing are activities that can be
enjoyed on un-groomed trails as well. However, as P-49 put it, "It's the only place to crosscountry ski, both skate-skiing and classic (styles)". Comments about the trails included wellmarked, groomed, great conditions, and variety of trails and difficulty levels.

74

Comments about the trails in the Cranbrook Hill Greenway/Forests for the World
area, and reasons for using them, included nice, diverse, always walkable, well-maintained,
well-marked, good trail system, can walk a long way, and developed trails without too much
disturbance. Two skiers gave conflicting comments about the state of the trails, however; P12 liked them because he thought they were "groomed for skate-skiing", while P-37 used the
trails for "real skiing - I like un-groomed trails".
Similar positive comments about well-maintained, well-marked and well-developed
trails were given for Cottonwood Island Park. Other comments included easy for young
children, easy to walk on, and enough room to walk side-by-side on trails. P-76 mentioned
that the trails are "good for a long walk", while P-19 commented that the trails were "good
for a short walk with kids and a dog - an hour".
Trail expansion and improvement were popular suggestions for the three sites with
trails, as were more off-leash dogs trails for all three areas. Two specific suggestions were a
trail from the closest residential area of the city to the Otway Nordic Ski Centre, so that users
could ski to the area instead of drive, and a trail to link the Otway Nordic Ski Centre with
Cottonwood Island Park. More and longer trail loops were desired for the Cranbrook Hill
Greenway/Forests for the World area. Accessibility to the trails was also raised by P-62, but
he conceded that while it is a problem for some, accessibility is "generally good as-is",
suggesting that most able-bodied people can use the trails.
Improved signage and mapping were also desired for the Otway Nordic Ski Centre
and the Cranbrook Hill Greenway/Forests for the World area. Suggestions included P-91 's
"bigger signs with rules, regulations and bylaws" along the cross-country ski trails, and better

75

signs and maps in the greenway trail system. In the words of P-15, "the map doesn't match
the trails".
For Cottonwood Island Park, several respondents suggested that there was still work
to be done to repair the trails damaged by the ice-jam flood. They said that bridges still need
to be replaced and P-76 added that "the trail along the river needs improvement". Increased
trail grooming was also raised.

Beauty. Participants were attracted to the beauty of three sites. The terms used to
describe the Otway Nordic Ski Centre, Cranbrook Hill Greenway/Forests for the World, and
Cottonwood Island Park were beautiful,fabulous, gorgeous,pretty by the river, and nice to

walk in .

Quietness. The same three sites also conjured feelings of quietness. Two distinct
feelings of quietness emerged in the comments: one of tranquillity, and one of a place with
few people. The tranquil feelings were described with the terms quiet, serenity, p eaceful,

comfortable, and good for the soul. One participant noted that he has been skiing at the
Otway Nordic Ski Centre for 25 years and it has become a comforting habit.
A place to go to be away from people was expressed with terms such as room for

many p eople, not crowded, don 't see many p eople, and secluded. Participants at the Hart Ski
Hill and the Ice Oval also used quiet and not crowded to positively describe the two sites. P78, however, would like to see Cottonwood Island Park remain uncrowded, and commented
that she did not want any site improvements for fear that the park "would become too
travelled".

Maintenance. The fact that sites were well-maintained was important for users of the
Otway Nordic Ski Centre, the Hart Ski Hill, and the Ice Oval. Participants described the two

76

ski areas as well-maintained, well-run, nicely kept, and well taken care of Well-maintained
and well-kept were also used for the Ice Oval, but participants also praised the quality of the
ice at the Oval, and said the ice was good and smooth. Suggestions for improved site and trail
maintenance included P-l 7's "taking down really big dead trees" in Cottonwood Island Park,
and P-62's concern that "dangerous tree snags need to be dealt with" in the Cranbrook Hill
Greenway/Forests for the World area.
A lack of maintenance and being unable to physically access parks were listed as
deterrents for some participants. Unploughed access roads, parking lots, and trails were
mentioned as a general problem. Participants also mentioned that too much snow in play
parks and playgrounds made them difficult to access, and P-38 commented that the "snow
makes it too difficult with kids". Unmaintained, icy trails, streets, and sidewalks were also
mentioned as reasons for not walking on trails and in neighbourhoods. I also received a
comment about local ski hills that is not tied directly to maintenance, but is related to site
conditions: P-45 said that he does not use local ski hills because the hills "can' t guarantee
conditions".
Affordability. Affordability was an important factor in attracting users to the sites,

and was mentioned for the Nordic and alpine ski sites, and the Ice Oval. Terms such as

affordable, decent price, reasonable rates and minimal cost were mentioned. P-70 also said
that the reason his family goes to the Hart Ski Hill is price, and explained that "Purden is too
expensive" (Purden Ski Village is a larger ski area, about 60 km east of Prince George) .
Another respondent reported that he liked going to the Ice Oval because it was free, whereas
in fact, at the time of my research, donations were encouraged to help with maintenance.
Since then, a nominal, and very affordable, fee has been put in place. Cranbrook Hill

77

Greenway/Forests for the World was also mentioned as being liked by several participants
because there is no user fee.
I received comments about the Otway Nordic Ski Centre and the Ice Oval being
beyond the financial means of some families. In fact, one respondent mentioned that he
avoided the Ice Oval because of the fee to use the facility. "More access for families who
can't pay" was suggested by P-76 at the Otway Nordic Ski Centre, while "no fees" at the Ice
Oval were desirable for P-60. The fact that the cross-country ski centre relies heavily on
volunteers was noted by P-36 who said, "I really appreciate the volunteers". However, P-37,
who is a volunteer at the Otway Nordic Ski Centre, suggested that the centre is getting too
large to rely so heavily on volunteers. He also noted that the cross-country ski centre, the Ice
Oval and the Cranbrook Hill Greenway all receive "very little public money", and each need
a Friends of group to help with fundraising and to raise awareness of the areas.

Dogs and trail cleanliness. Dogs were an important consideration for some
participants when choosing which sites to use. The three sites with trails all have provisions
for dogs. The dog loop at the Otway Nordic Ski Centre was mentioned by several
participants as a reason for choosing the site, and was described as fantastic. Respondents
reported liking the off-leash trails at Cranbrook Hill Greenway/Forests for the World because
they provide space for dogs and there are other dogs to play with.
Cottonwood Island Park was also described as a good place to free dogs, to walk dogs

off-leash, and for dogs to play with each other. However, other participants pointed out that
Cottonwood Island Park is not an off-leash park, even though it is treated as such by many
owners. More bylaw enforcement in the park was suggested to deal with the issue.

78

Many respondents were upset about dog owners not picking up after their dogs at the
three sites with trails. More doggie bag stations were suggested for the Cranbrook Hill
Greenway/Forests for the World area and Cottonwood Island Park. As well as remarking on
dog faeces, several participants complained about garbage on trails. An increased number of
garbage cans was listed as a possible solution to both problems, particularly for Cranbrook
Hill Greenway/Forests for the World area and Cottonwood Island Park.

Facilities. Users of the two ski areas and the Ice Oval listed facilities and amenities as
attractors to the sites. Facilities in general at the cross-country ski centre were described as
being well-developed, and the lodge, rentals, and parking were specifically listed. Users of
the downhill ski area used the words good and well-developed for the facilities, and
expressed liking the terrain park. Some participants liked the Ice Oval picnic benches, and P96 said that the "steps are a good improvement".
I received suggestions for improved parking and parking lot clearing for the Otway
Nordic Ski Centre, Cranbrook Hill Greenway/Forest for the World, Cottonwood Island Park,
and the Ice Oval. Better latrine or washroom facilities were also listed for the same four sites.
Other facility and amenity improvements were suggested for all sites except Cottonwood
Island Park. At the Otway Nordic Ski Centre, the main complaint was about a groomer that
kept breaking down that winter, but respondents were aware that it was a temporary problem.
Obtaining a licence to serve alcohol was suggested for both the cross-country and downhill
ski lodges. At the downhill ski area, participants also suggested amenities for children and
beginners: a conveyor belt/surface lift; a children's ski area; and, a tobogganing hill for
younger children. A larger indoor area was also mentioned for the downhill ski club.

79

Warming amenities were suggested for the Ice Oval and Forests for the World.
Participants asked for firewood to be supplied for the fire pit at Shane Lake in Forests for the
World. For the Ice Oval, several participants proposed a warming hut, a shelter, or a handwarming station. (A new building has been built at the Ice Oval since my research was
completed, and will be discussed in more detail further on.) More benches were also desired
at the Ice Oval, as was refrigerating the rink so that the ice would last longer in warmer
temperatures.
Hours of operation were raised for the Hart Ski Hill and the Ice Oval. Participants
wanted both facilities to have longer opening hours and to be open later in the season. P-53
would like to see "better communication for hours and when (the Hart Ski Hill) is open".
Recreation. Participants who use the Otway Nordic Ski Centre and the Ice Oval made
comments about the two sites that were not mentioned for any other site. Exercise was
mentioned for both sites with comments like "( cross-country skiing) is good cardio - it can be
as intense as you like", by P-41, and skating around the oval is "good training for the
Iceman", by P-32. (The Iceman is a winter multi-sport event that takes place in Prince
George in January or February each year. The event incorporates cross-country skiing,
running, skating, and swimming, and participants can compete individually or as part of a
team (Prince George Iceman Society, n.d.).)
Recreation and fun were also used to describe the same two sites. Cold and slightly
colder were also used at the Otway Nordic Ski Centre and the Ice Oval as positive
descriptors, to explain that the snow and ice conditions remain good longer because the two
areas are colder than the more central, built-up areas.

80

Other attractive features. In some cases, reasons for preferring a particular site were
very specific. Night-skiing at the Otway Nordic Ski Centre was mentioned several times as a
draw, as was the food that is offered during races. The Hart Ski Hill was described by P-70 as
"a gem", and being a good place for children and adults to learn how to ski. The fact that the
downhill ski hill is in the snowbelt was also mentioned as being advantageous for skiing
conditions. The large rink size of the Ice Oval was seen as a positive reason for going, as was
the no-hockey rule. P-86 liked the Ice Oval because there was no cafeteria and "no pressure
to buy unhealthy foods".

Other unattractive features. Other reasons for avoiding sites in winter included site
layout and design being inappropriate for winter activities, and a lack of personal safety and
comfort. A few people said they avoid the Rainbow Park toboggan hill because of the site
layout. Participants noted that the hill ' s shape encourages toboggans to end in the same spot,
resulting in collisions. The park is also a pedestrian corridor for the area, and toboggans
frequently cross a walking path at the bottom of the hill. Some participants also reported
avoiding trails that are narrow and steep, and trails that were in constant shade.
A lack of personal safety and comfort were listed as deterrents to site use, but had
different meanings for different participants. Too many people at a toboggan hill turned some
users away, while not enough people on trails gave some participants, particularly women, a
feeling of isolation and unease. "Not (feeling) comfortable with the people in the area" was a
reason given by P-86 for avoiding the Civic Centre rink downtown. A different sense of lack
of personal safety and comfort was expressed for mixed-use trails; respondents remarked that
snowmobiling and walking are not activities that mix well on trails.

81

Activities and site use. As part of the questionnaire, I asked residents which
activities they enjoyed at each of their favourite sites, and many respondents supplied more
than one activity for some of the sites. From the answers, I compiled a list of the most
popular activities overall, regardless of which site the participants listed.
In 2014, the City of Prince George hired a consultant to conduct surveys to aid in the
development of its Community Recreation Services Plan. The consultant asked residents to
list all types of recreational activities, indoor and out, that they had participated in during the
previous twelve months. I compared my results to those of the consultants ' and noted striking
differences. One of the most glaring differences is in the popularity of snowshoeing and
Nordic skiing. As can be seen in Figure 11, the consultants grouped the two activities
together, with 21 % of participants self-reporting that they had participated in one or both of
those activities. In addition, the two activities were grouped together as the third mostpopular outdoor winter recreation activities. In my results, however, 55 out of 100
participants listed snowshoeing as one of their activities, and 52 out of 100 listed Nordic
skiing. As can be seen in Figure 12, snowshoeing and Nordic skiing were the second and third
most popular activities respectively.

82

Walking/hiking

51

·1"':l Snowshoeing & Nordic ski

:~
<
(.)

Hockey/skating/curling

21
____ 9

Running/jogging

8

Snowmobiling

4
10

0

40

30

20

60

50

• Percentage of respondents

Note. Data are from the City of Prince George (2014c) Telephone Survey, Public Engagement &
Community Context: Background Document in support of the Community Recreation Services Plan.
Figure 11 . Outdoor winter recreation activities as reported by residents of Prince George for the
previous year.

Walking/hiking

63

Snowshoeing

55

Nordic skiing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Dog walking/hiking

-~$1!
"",£' "?' '1\""'!l?,:,,~
!1,···.,!!!lMl!
, ~~".,z.A!;
:t , ,_, ,:,M
·"·'lll
'·····,lb!l&iliiiliJBB&li&B&rilili·- - - · 48
1

Skating/hockey

42

35

Alpine skiing/snowboarding

25

Tobogganing
Running/jogging

14
0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

• Number of respondents

Figure 12. Most popular winter recreation activities in Prince George, BC.

I believe the differences in results come from the demographics of the population that
were polled. Mustel Group, on behalf of the City of Prince George, conducted "a total of 462
interviews ... by telephone with a random selection of adults, 18 years of age or over" (City
of PG, 2014c, p. 2). On the other hand, I consulted adults who were actively engaged in
83

outdoor winter activities. While the survey gave the city a very general overview of
recreation in Prince George, it did not give a good picture of outdoor winter recreation. In
order to really understand the behaviours of a target group and make sound decisions,
municipalities need carefully targeted research (Howard & Crompton, 1984).
After compiling the overall activities results, I returned to the five most popular sites
to make my own observations of how people were using those specific sites. The activities
that were reported and observed fell into the following five categories: active pursuits;
artistic and nature-related pursuits; socializing; basking in the sunshine; and, informal snow
play.

Active pursuits. Cross-country skiing was the predominant activity that was reported
by participants and that I observed during my site visit at the Otway Nordic Ski Centre.
Snowshoeing and running on the snowshoe trails were also mentioned by participants. I did
not see anyone running on the trails while I was there, but I observed a few people
snowshoeing. At the Hart Ski Hill, downhill skiing and snowboarding were both popular.
When I administered the questionnaires, one person also listed telemark skiing.
Skating was the only activity mentioned by the people who use the Ice Oval. This is
not surprising, however, since this facility was built specifically for long-track speed skating.
While on site, however, I observed both recreational and speed skating styles being enjoyed
during the public skating time. The skaters ranged in age from small children to
grandparents, and included beginners to experts.
At Cranbrook Hill Greenway/Forests for the World, snowshoeing, walking and hiking
were the three most-reported activities. Walking and/or hiking with a dog were also popular,
and cross-country skiing and running were also listed by a few questionnaire participants.

84

During my site visit, I observed all activities, though walking and walking with a dog were
the two most common. A similar range of activities were also listed for Cottonwood Island
Park, with walking, hiking, and dog walking being the most popular. Participants also listed
snowshoeing and cross-country skiing. I did not observe anyone cross-country skiing during
my site visit, but walking and walking dogs on and off-leash were very popular, and I saw a
family snowshoeing.

Artistic and nature-related pursuits. Participants listed photography and nature
watching/identification as activities that they enjoy at both the Cranbrook Hill
Greenway/Forests for the World area and Cottonwood Island Park. One respondent also
reported that he likes to go ice fishing at Shane Lake in Forests for the World. I did not
observe anyone ice fishing when I was on site, but many groups stopped for several minutes
at a viewing platform at Shane Lake.

Socializing. Participants did not overtly mention social activities while answering the
questionnaire, but hinted at them by listing picnicking at Cottonwood Island Park and using
the fire pit at Forests for the World. When I conducted my site visits, I observed a number of
social activities at all five sites. Otway Nordic Ski Centre appeared to have a very rich social
atmosphere, with people of all ages engaged in informal social activities: adults were
chatting, often while waiting for children to finish lessons; small groups of adults skied
together, some while their children were in lessons; and, children were playing in small
groups within sight and sound of their adult guardians.
At the Hart Ski Hill, it was mostly adults who were socializing outside while children
skied and snowboarded. From what I observed, many adults did not stay long; it appeared
that they were either dropping children off, or waiting to pick them up. On the other hand, the

85

social activities at the Ice Oval included all ages, and appeared to consist of single- and
multi-family units, including multi-generational families, and medium to large groups of
friends. Many groups also had hot drinks in thermoses, as well as snacks that they enjoyed
together. Some people arrived and skated on their own, but these were overwhelmingly speed
skaters, and they were in the minority on the day that I observed the site.
The north-east end of Shane Lake in the Forests for the World area is a natural
gathering place, with a sunny clearing, picnic tables, a fire pit, and an elevated platform. I
observed many families and groups move in and out of the space during my site visit. The
groups did not really interact, but did greet each other. Most did not stay long, tending to stop
for a short break before continuing along the trails. The elevated platform attracted children
and adults alike, and provided a good viewpoint of the lake. It is interesting to note that
groups appeared to be aware of taking turns occupying the space along the railing. I
overheard adults telling children that their time was up, and to move back to give the next
group a tum. I also saw many families going for walks at Cottonwood Island Park, and many
of them were multi-generational. I observed friends arrive separately, but meet in the parking
lot to go for a walk together. I also saw a number of people who greeted each other, but kept
a greater distance between each other, and appeared to be more acquaintances than friends.
They often chatted for a few minutes, and interacted with each other's dogs. It is possible that
these people were regular users of the park.

Basking in the sunshine. At the Otway Nordic Ski Centre, I observed people who
were definitely basking in the sunshine. They were sitting on benches or chairs on the two
patio areas, some of them just sitting on their own, leaning against the wall. At the Hart Ski

86

Hill, the sun-drenched bench was occupied for most of the time that I was there, as were the
chairs that had been taken outside.
The picnic tables at the Ice Oval were also in the sun, and skaters were taking breaks
in the sunny area. In a few places, children were playing in the snowbanks along the side of
the skate trail, and in all cases, they had chosen sunny spots to play in. I did not observe any
sunbathing at Cottonwood Island Park, but there were no benches or picnic tables that were
in full sun. The parking lot received unobstructed sunshine, though, and some people chose
to stand in the sun by their vehicles to have a chat.

Informal snow play. Children played in snowbanks and snow piles at all five sites.
They slid and rolled down bigger piles, ran over smaller ones, and generally used the snow as
a resource for play. At the Ice Oval, some children clambered off the ice, into the deep snow,
and built play areas, such as mazes and seating areas. Cottonwood Island Park had the least
amount of snow pack, and that is where I observed the least amount of informal snow play.
Winter design in outdoor recreation sites. Winter design principles, when
employed, improve the user experience by making sites and microclimates more comfortable
for people. This section explores how well winter design principles have been used in the
five most popular sites, and how well the city has integrated winter considerations into parks
policy and maintenance. When I returned to the five most popular sites to record site features
and amenities, I looked specifically for the five basic elements of winter city design:
blocking wind; capturing sunlight; using colour; providing winter-appropriate infrastructure,
such as places to pile snow, access to power for lights, and fire pits; and, using light for
night-time activities.

87

City planning and maintenance. During the interviews with city staff, I asked if a
winter lens is used when planning new parks, parks renewal, programming, operations, and
maintenance. I was told that there is not a checklist of criteria, but that the parks planner is
trained in four-season design. Multi-season features that are considered include: plant
material for colour, texture, and blocking wind; form and structure of design elements;
lighting; and, rnicroclimate sensitivity, including how rnicroclimates change with the
seasons.
Maintenance service levels in the parks in winter, however, are minimal. Interviewees
reported that parks staff are employed year-round, but that they are transferred to snow
removal duties in the winter. Their "main focus during the winter is snow/ice removal at
Civic facilities" (city staff informant, personal communication, November 12, 2015), such as
maintaining parking lots, sidewalks and entrances at all city buildings. One staff member
(personal communication, November 12, 2015) confirmed that the lowest priority items are
"trails, tunnels, bridges, stairways, pathways, parking lots at nature parks, parking lots at
outdoor ice rinks etc.".
I told interviewees that my findings showed participants avoid playgrounds in winter,
and I asked about the possibility of clearing some playgrounds for better access through the
snow. There was genuine surprised at my findings, and I was asked about the comments that
I had received. In the end, interviewees said that at current staffing levels, clearing
playgrounds would be impossible. Access for maintenance staff could itself be an issue, and
two interviewees suggested that staff would have to use snowmobiles to reach some
playground sites. 1-1 B indicated that liability risks for the city could also increase if
playgrounds were cleared. He explained that cleared playgrounds would give the message

88

that they are safe to use in winter. In a half-joking manner, he suggested, "the city is being
pro-active so that kids won't freeze their tongues on poles".
When I conducted the site visits, I looked to see how many of the five basic elements
of winter city design had been incorporated into the sites. Table 4 shows which elements
were found at each of the five most popular winter recreation sites.

Table 4

Presence of Winter City Design Elements in the Five Most-Popular Winter Recreation Sites in Prince
George, BC

Colour/visual
Winter
infrastructure
interest

Park site

Blocking
wind

Capturing
sunlight

Otway

./

./

./

./

./

Hart Ski Hill

./

./

./

./

./

Ice Oval

./

./

./

./

./

CHG/FFTW

./

./

./

./

Cottonwood

./

./

./

Using light

Note. This table merely represents the presence of design elements at the sites, not type or magnitude.

Blocking wind. Natural tree stands offer protection from the wind at all of the sites
except for the Ice Oval, but it takes advantage of the local landscape instead. The tree stands
are mixed coniferous and deciduous trees at the four sites, which is a prime mix for winter
activities: coniferous trees block wind, while leafless deciduous trees allow sunlight to filter
into areas, providing some warming from solar radiation. The trails at all four sites run
through the trees, and open frequently to sheltered, sunlit areas, as can be seen in Figure 13.
Users of the Ice Oval are sheltered somewhat by a nearby tree stand; however, the main
source of natural wind blocking comes from the depression that the Ice Oval was built in. As
can be seen in Figure 14, the skating oval is lower than the surrounding landscape.
89

Note. The children featured in the photos in this thesis are my own children, and I received
permission from both of them to use their images.
Figure 13. Sheltered, sunlit trail at Forests for the World.

90

Figure 14. The Ice Oval, built in a natural depression to protect skaters from prevailing winds.

Capturing sunlight. Prominent sunlit areas are found at both skiing facilities, the Ice
Oval and the Cranbook Greenway/Forests for the World area. The only large area at
Cottonwood Island Park that receives a significant amount of sun is the parking lot, which is
where I observed people socializing. A sparsely-treed area close to the parking lot offers
picnic tables with mottled sun and shade, but sunny spots can be found along the trails.
The Otway Nordic Ski Centre stadium and lodge face south and receive direct
sunlight for most of the day, as shown in Figure 15. The stadium is used as a staging area and
for beginner lessons. The lodge has two south-facing patio areas, one on the ground level and
one on the second level. The sun warms not only the patios themselves, but also the outer
building walls, allowing users to be warmed by direct sunlight and heat that is reflected off
the building. The bright, warm stadium and south-facing area outside the lodge are where I
observed the social activities and sunbathing during my site visit.

91

Figure 15. The Otway Nordic Ski Centre stadium and lodge in direct sunlight, making the area more
comfortable for skiers.

The Otway Nordic Ski Centre has two other sunlit areas that are used for
programming. The old gravel quarry offers a sunlit meadow with a fire pit and benches, as
well as a depression for skiers to practice going down and up hills on Nordic skis. This area
can be booked and used by community groups. The biathlon range is also an open, sunny
area, and has a small lodge for supplies. (The biathlon range was moved for the 2015 Canada
Winter Games after my site visits were completed. All discussion in this paper about the
biathlon range refers to the old site.) Users of the quarry area and the biathlon range benefit
from direct sunlight because both spaces are used for more sedentary activities, such as
sitting around the fire, target practice, and observing trainees.
At the Hart Ski Hill, the main congregating area at the bottom of the hill, as well as
the lower parts of many of the ski runs, receive ample amounts of afternoon sun. The ski
lodge faces south-west and receives direct sunlight for most of the day. While there is not a
patio, a bench has been placed against the south-west-facing wall, allowing users to be

92

warmed by both the sun and the reflected heat from the building. I also observed that some
adults had taken chairs from inside and placed them against the building in the sun,
increasing the number of seats available for people watching children on the hill.
The Ice Oval is found in a depression with little to block sunlight for much of the day.
In fact, the areas to the south and south-east of the rink have been cleared of all trees for
parking lots. During the mornings and early afternoons, the rink receives direct sunlight,
which increases skaters' comfort levels but can also soften the ice surface on warmer days.
To the west of the rink is the base of a large, treed hill. The hill and trees start shading the
west side of the oval by mid- to late-afternoon in the winter. The open-air changing area is
located on the east side of the rink, however, and receives sun for most of the afternoon.
When I conducted my site visit, the children who were playing in the snowbanks chose the
sunny locations to play in, and moved with the sun when shadows encroached on their play
areas.
In Forests for the World, a picnic area has been developed on the north-east end of
Shane Lake. This area receives ample sunlight, and is a popular spot to sit and rest, and even
observe wildlife. This is also the location of the picnic benches and the fire pit that
participants mentioned using.

Using colour. The Otway Nordic Ski Centre has the best use of colour of the five
recreation sites. The lodge has a warm, wooden exterior and a bright red, metal roof. The
other buildings and shelters at the centre sport the same red metal roofs. The outhouses have
colourful doors, and some of the snowshoe trail signs are green, while others are bright
yellow. Whimsical cut-outs of cartoon characters also adorn some of the trails that are used
for children's learn-to-ski programs.

93

The sign posts in Forests for the World and the Cranbrook Hill Greenway are
constructed of wood and are stained a warm colour. The interpretive section of the signs, as
seen in Figure 16, is printed in colour, and provides information about local flora, fauna,
and/or geographic and topographical information. The outhouses in Forests for the World are
more muted, and are constructed of concrete and wood that has been painted sage green.

Fig ure 16. Interpretive signs with a mix of warm, natural materials and colour add visual interest to

the winter landscape, and can inform trail users about the area.

The Hart Ski Hill lodge is predominantly white with dark brown accents, but some
shutters are painted dark green. Colour accents can be found in the signage around the hill:
some of the information signs are blue and white, while others are mostly white with bright
red lettering. The colours in the signs help them to stand out against the winter landscape.
When I conducted my research at the Ice Oval, a bright yellow railing directed skaters
down the stairs to the rink, and the port-a-potty was bright blue. After my research was
completed, a new building with an office, washroom and skate-change area was built for the
94

2015 Canada Winter Games. The new building is constructed of stone and wood, and has a
bright red roof.
Very little colour is used at Cottonwood Island Park, but Tree Spirit Carvings add a
different type of visual interest. The spirit carvings are small, male faces carved into
cottonwood trees along the trails. They are high enough on the trees that they do not get
covered in snow, so are visible year-round.

Winter-appropriate infrastructure and amenities. The city considers the following
winter maintenance and operations factors when planning infrastructure and amenities for
park spaces: how durable the surfaces are and how they will stand up to repeated snow
clearing; aesthetics; snow-removal, snow loads and snow storage; and, connectivity of
spaces, including trail, road and sidewalk networks. A changing climate must also be taken
into account, and staff have already seen impacts on infrastructure, particularly roads,
because of increased freeze-thaw cycles. Most of the existing park facilities, however, are not
designed for four-season use. Park staff are responsible for closing buildings for the winter,
notably the washrooms in Fort George Park and Carney Hill Park, as shown in Figure 17.
Staff reported that both buildings are older facilities, and were designed for three-season use.
As the buildings are uninsulated and unheated, the pipe "systems are drained and winterized
from November to May" (personal communication, November 12, 2015).

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Figure 17. Sign on closed park washroom door during the winter.

When I visited the five most popular sites, each of them was accessible from
roadways, and had groomed parking lots. The parking lots were snow-covered, but easily
accessed by all types of vehicles. All sites appeared to accommodate local snow storage, but
I was not able to confirm if on-site storage is practised at the sites.
Both ski areas have heated lodges, which were popular reasons cited by participants
for using both sites. On the main level, the lodge at the Otway Nordic Ski Centre
accommodates waxing facilities, an administration office, and a rental shop that offers crosscountry ski and snowshoe rentals, maps, and the sale of trail passes and snacks. On the upper
level, there are: washrooms with running water; a large common room where food is sold
during races; and, a smaller club room. Both the large and small rooms can be rented by

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individuals and community groups for private functions. The lodge at the Hart Ski Hill also
has two levels. The rental shop and office are found on the main floor, while a cafeteria and
dining room are found on the second floor. Washrooms with running water are also available
in the lodge. An important feature of the two lodges is the connection between the indoor and
outdoor spaces, as both have large south-facing windows that overlook the main activity
areas. This allows people who need to be inside to still feel connected to the outdoors, and
also allows for interaction between people who are inside and those who are engaged in
activities outside, as seen in Figure 18.

Figure 18. Large windows face the ski hill, providing opportunities for indoor-outdoor interactions.

Fire pits give users the opportunity to create a place to warm-up. Fire pits are
available at the Otway Nordic Ski Centre and Forests for the World. Wood is available at
Otway, and the pit is cleared by the facility. At Forests for the World, wood is available, but
the firewood storage area is not sheltered, and the wood was buried in snow during my site
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visit. The fire pit looked as though it had been used, which confirmed a participant's
comments about using it, but a fresh layer of snow covered the charred wood inside.
Snow levels had clearly been considered when installing some infrastructure and
amenities, but not others. For example, signs along the cross-country ski trails were placed
high enough that users could still see them above the snow. In addition, along the Cranbrook
Hill Greenway and Forests for the World trails, small roofs on the signs not only kept the
signs free of snow, but also reduced the snow build-up around the bases. However, access to
garbage cans was a problem along the same trails. Figure 19 shows a garbage can that is
almost covered in snow and difficult to reach from the trail.

Figure 19. Garbage can on the right, almost buried and inaccessible in the wintertime, is an example
of how lack of consideration for snowpack levels during the planning stage can result in problems.

Maintenance of, and access to, uncovered picnic tables varied by location and snow
levels. The tables at the Ice Oval were well-maintained and kept clear of snow. The snow
level at Cottonwood Island Park was low enough that picnic tables were still visible and
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accessible, although they were snow-covered. The picnic table beside the fire pit at Forests
for the World was completely buried, as can be seen in Figure 20. Year-round picnicking was
still accommodated at the site, though, with a picnic shelter that covered three fixed picnic
tables; however, the roof of the shelter shaded some of the tables, blocking the warmth of the
sun for users. The problem is not unique to the sites I visited, as P-14 commented that,
"benches need to be higher than the snow at Moore's Meadow". A more winter-friendly
seating option was offered at the fire pit at the Otway Nordic Ski Centre: moveable benches,
as shown in Figure 21. The benches can be moved closer to, or further away from, the fire
and into sunny spots as desired. This occasional shifting by visitors keeps them above the
snowpack. The benches were well-chosen for the location and type of users as they do not
have a low crossbar so skiers can choose to sit without taking their skis off.

Figure 20. Picnic table blocked by high snow levels because maintenance of amenities is not carried
out year-round.

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Figure 21. Moveable benches give users flexibility for where they want to sit, and high crossbars
allow skiers to sit with their skis under the benches - if their legs are long enough!

Winter access to outhouses differed by location. At the Otway Nordic Ski Centre, the
snow level was high, but the snow appeared to have been cleared away from the doors on a
regular basis. The same level of maintenance did not appear to have been carried out at
Forests for the World. During my site visit, the doors of both outhouses could be opened, but
only with difficulty. Figure 22 shows the limited swing of one of the outhouse doors. The
door to the outhouse at Cottonwood Island Park swung easily, thanks to lower snow levels
and what appeared to be a small platform that kept the outhouse slightly higher off the
ground. The port-a-potty that was at the Ice Oval when I carried out my research was
elevated off the ice and kept clear of snow.

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Figure 22. Outhouse, a vital amenity, blocked because of lack ofregular maintenance in the winter.

Storage space for maintenance equipment and vehicles was accounted for in the
design of the Otway Nordic Ski Centre, the Hart Ski Hill and the Ice Oval. Snowmobiles,
track-setters, and snow-making guns are vital to the quality of the cross-country ski trails at
Otway. Storage areas and maintenance sheds exist on-site, allowing the club to maintain a
high-quality facility. Similarly, on-site storage exists for snowmobiles and grooming
equipment for the downhill ski runs at the Hart Ski Hill. When I did my field research, the
Zamboni, water truck, and bobcats for ice-making and maintenance were being housed in
rented spaces adjacent to the Ice Oval rink (Outdoor Ice Oval Society of Prince George, n.d.).
The new Ice Oval Centre has been designed to store the equipment on-site (Outdoor Ice Oval
Society of Prince George, 2015).
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Using light. Three of the five sites have installed lighting for night time use: Otway
Nordic Ski Centre, Hart Ski Hill, and the Ice Oval. In fact, lit trails for night skiing was
mentioned as a draw to the two ski sites by some of the questionnaire participants. The
parking lots are lit at all three sites, as well as parts, if not all, of the facilities. The Otway
Nordic Ski Centre offers a number of lit trails and loops after dark, but all trails remain open
for skiers who wish to wear headlamps. There is limited lighting at the stadium and gravel
quarry, but enough that community groups can book learn-to-ski programs in the evenings.
The lighting is purely functional, and consists of floodlights on overhead poles that provide a
wide beam spread.
Both the Hart Ski Hill and the Ice Oval are lit for full use of the facilities after dark.
The lighting is much like that at the Otway Nordic Ski Centre: functional and from tall poles.
Creative use of light and different types of lighting features are not currently being used at
any of the sites. Neither of the trail/park sites has any night-time lighting. The lack of lighting
infrastructure in many parks was noted by some questionnaire participants who suggested
that there should be more overall.

Future Winter Recreation Development
I asked the questionnaire participants what kind of winter recreation opportunities
they would like to see developed in Prince George over the next ten years. I also asked whom
they thought should be responsible for developing the new amenities, and whether or not
they would be willing to pay a fee for a limited time to pay for the projects. I asked city staff
members about the city's approach to recreation programming and services, as well, to get a
better picture of the potential feasibility of some of the participants' ideas.

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Of the 100 participants, 74 provided ideas for recreation development, either when
answering the question, or while providing additional comments at the end of the
questionnaire. Many of the 74 respondents suggested more than one idea for improved
outdoor winter recreation in Prince George. The ideas fell into three categories: new
activities and services; expanded activities and services; and, increased infrastructure. Table
5 provides an overview of the suggestions that I received for outdoor winter recreation
development.

Table 5

Suggestions for Improved Outdoor Winter Recreation in Prince George, BC
New activities & services
Tubing park
Another downhill ski hill
Dog sledding terrain & trails
Skijoring trails
Steps from Ginter's to UNBC
Climbing
Snow golf
Ice rescue education
Luge/bobsled
Exclusive snowmobile trails
Snowmobile staging area
Public transit to Otway

Expanded activities & services
More off-leash areas for dogs
More toboggan hills
More outdoor skating
Off-road running routes
More multi-season trails
Free x-c ski trails in town
X-c ski rentals by trails
More snowshoeing trails
More sidewalks for walking
Cleared sidewalks & walkways
Improved trail grooming
More activities & events

Winter festivals

More for small children

Winter sports try-out day
Winter equipment swaps
Winter recreation society
Skates at Ice Oval for kids
Ice fishing services

Outdoor winter park
Make Otway ski trails free
Better road & parking access
Unlock gate at Blue Spruce
Better promotion & advertising
Increased resources for
existing opportunities

Increased infrastructure
BBQ & fire pits in parks
More lighting in parks/trails
Washroom in Cottonwood Pk
Outhouses along trail system
More garbage cans along trails
More dog bag dispensers
More picnic tables
More free parking
Higher benches
Winterized bus shelters

New activities and services. The development of a tubing park and bigger winter
festivals were the two most popular recommendations for new activities that I received.
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Festival theme ideas included ice fishing, tobogganing, snowshoeing, and a Family Day
celebration. A winter sports try-out day was also put forward, where residents could
experience equipment and winter sports that were new to them. Luge and bobsled runs were
suggested by three participants. One added that the run could start at UNBC and end in the
Bowl area. Another reminisced about riding a bobsled down Tabor Road as a child.
Access to designated snowmobile trails was raised by several participants. Discussing
this topic was the only time I encountered some reluctance from participants to be completely
open. Two of the participants were hesitant to admit that they snowmobiled within the city
limits, and acknowledged that they know it is illegal to do so. A couple of participants
suggested creating designated snowmobile staging areas on the edge of the city where
residents could access trails that lead out of the city limits.
A few community-focused ideas were put forward. One participant suggested that bus
service be offered to the Otway Nordic Ski Centre two to three times each morning and
afternoon. This participant even provided a potential circular route: from UNBC to Canadian
Tire to Pine Centre and Spruceland Malls, then out to the ski centre and back. Another
participant suggested that Canadian Tire could be asked to donate skates to the Ice Oval for
children to use. Yet another believes that the city should partner with OVERhang Outdoor
Vertical Education and Recreation to deliver subsidized ice rescue courses to increase the
public 's safety around lakes and rivers in the wintertime. Such a partnership might be in line
with current city policy.
The city works on a community development model, and relies on community
associations and non-profit partners to provide winter recreation opportunities. The city
supports its partners through tax exemptions, staff liaisons, service agreements for the use of

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crown land that is leased by the city, and ice-making workshops. One of the city staff
members pointed out that non-profit groups can often provide programs at a lower cost than
the city can, so residents benefit from this program-delivery model. A different partnership
idea was raised by a questionnaire participant: creating a winter recreation society. He did
not expand much on his idea, but said that it could be structured much like the Friends of
societies that already exist, and could work with existing societies to help get more people
outside in winter, and to help grow existing programs and facilities .
Expanded activities and services. Trail-related comments were the most common
recommendations for expanded services, accounting for 40 suggestions. Many participants
would like existing trails to be connected to each other to create an expanded network, and
for existing trails to be up-graded for multi-season use. More cross-country ski trails in
general were called for, but, more particularly, free, in-town groomed ski trails were desired.
More trails for snowshoeing throughout the city were also suggested, as was better grooming
of existing trails and pathways. Also related to trails was a need for rental equipment close to
cross-country ski trails in the city, as well as access to children' s snowshoe rentals in town
and at the Otway Nordic Ski Centre. Groomed sidewalks for walkers, and more sidewalks in
general, specifically in the Hart, were strongly recommended. The lack of cleaning dog
faeces off the trails was also mentioned as a problem.
Increased outdoor skating opportunities were mentioned by 14 participants.
Suggestions ranged from more outdoor rinks to more outdoor rinks specifically for hockey to
a free skating park to more support from the city for community rinks. Refrigerated rinks,
like the one at the Civic Centre, were suggested in order to extend the outdoor skating season

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and to make maintenance easier. One participant suggested a refrigerated base for the Ice
Oval as well, or a roof to keep direct sun off the ice surface.
Places to play and activities for children and families were mentioned by several
participants. More for children was the general theme that emerged from the comments,
particularly free activities and, as P-27 remarked, more for "little kids - it's hard for under
three's". Expanded programming at existing sites was suggested, as was better winter access
to children's parks. One participant noted that significant resources went into installing a
water park for summer use at Rainbow Park, so it would be nice to see as much attention put
into development for winter activities in the park. Winter park ideas from participants
included a skating pond, ice sculptures, big piles of snow like at the Civic Light Up, and an
area to paint on the snow and build snowmen.
P-31 and P-43 answered the question about more winter recreation opportunities by
simply stating respectively, "put more resources into what's already there", and "maintain
what we've already got". In fact, the city is planning to do just that. City staff reported that
city council wants to capitalize on the success of the events that surrounded the 2015 Canada
Winter Games. As a result, council has put funding into a dedicated staff position to look at
year-round community celebrations in civic gathering spaces. This program is just being
developed, so the details are not yet clear, but the work will most likely be focused on
partnerships and helping groups to grow existing events. The staff person will be expected to
research what is already happening in the community, and identify any gaps. If necessary, the
city may provide some new direct programming, but only in the form of a special event.

Increased infrastructure. Seventeen suggestions were offered for increased
infrastructure to support outdoor winter recreation. More lighting in the city, specifically in

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the Hart, on trails, and in Fort George Park was desired. One respondent suggested that dog
faeces could be used to power lights in parks, much like the Park Spark Project (n.d.) in
Cambridge, USA. BBQ and fire pits for public use were desired in more parks, with one
respondent wishing to see them in all parks. Outhouses along the trail systems and a
washroom in Cottonwood Island Park were suggested. More garbage cans along trails and
more dog bag receptacles were offered to help with garbage and dog faeces found on trails.
More picnic tables in the Forests for the World area were desired, as were higher benches in
Moore's Meadow. Winterized bus shelters were also suggested.
Development and financial responsibilities. I asked participants whom they thought
should be responsible for developing new winter recreation opportunities, and if they would
be willing to pay a fee for a limited time to help pay for new projects. Some of the 66
participants who provided feedback for these two questions provided more than one answer,
usually with reference to specific development ideas. As shown in Figure 23, support for
public-private partnerships was high, as was support for city-led development. A few
respondents clarified their answers in some detail. P-52 believed the city should be
responsible for development and added, "When the city is responsible, everyone gains. A
private organization is only looking for profit." P-37 suggested that the city should "provide
sponsorship, not with money, but other resources", such as equipment for volunteer-led work
parties. Responses for the Other category for financial responsibility generally expressed
ideas for specific development ideas, or a mixed approach to development. For example, P56 suggested that "the city should be responsible for construction, and maintenance should be
passed to a private organization or community group", while another thought that a private
organization should create more cross-country ski trails, but that the city should be

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responsible for clearing all trails. Adding community volunteers to the equation was also
suggested by several respondents. As P-94 said, "everyone should work together".

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Figure 23. Number ofresponses related to responsibly for future winter recreation development in

Prince George, BC.

I asked city staff about future developments, partnerships, and using a public-private
partnership (P3) model. I was told that the city mainly partners with community-level nonprofit organizations. One of the interviewees pointed out that the community development
model has been working successfully in the city, and that non-profit groups can access grants
that the city is unable to. Trail development in the Cranbrook Hill Greenway, for example,
has been funded mainly by donations and grants. The city did enter into a P3 agreement to
help build the Northern Sports Centre, but the city generally only employs the P3 model for
large developments.
I also asked questionnaire participants if they would be willing to pay a fee for a
limited time to help with development of a new recreation opportunity. Sixty-three
participants provided responses: 46 said yes; 9 said no; and, 8 said maybe. Additional
comments were received from participants, with some feeling that they were already paying

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enough for recreation in taxes, while others were willing to see an increase in taxes if the
amount was ear-marked specifically for outdoor recreation.
The results that I have discussed were gleaned from multiple sources, using multiple
methods. Triangulating all the data provides a more robust result, and gives a clear overall
picture of outdoor winter recreation in Prince George. While all of my data are Prince
George-specific, they reveal insights into outdoor recreation in winter cities in general. How
my data and results fit into existing literature, and how they could be applied to improve
outdoor winter recreation in Prince George and in other winter cities, will be analysed in the
next two chapters.

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Chapter 5 Analysis
There is very little extant research on use or design of urban winter outdoor recreation
spaces. As a result, I focused on literature pertaining to: the effects of thermal comfort,
climate, weather and microclimates on the use of outdoor spaces in winter; how people
behave differently outside in winter; how residents helped to redesign a park for multi-season
activities and comfort; and, winter city design and policy. In this chapter, I will revisit that
literature, and explain how my findings not only fill in some of the gaps, but add to a nascent
field of literature. This chapter also revisits my research questions, and is organised around
them. I will first analyse what my research participants were looking for in outdoor
recreation sites. Next, I will explore the activities they are actively engaged in, and how they
perceive future development of winter outdoor recreation sites in Prince George. Finally, I
will examine how the participants' expectations for winter recreation spaces are aligning, or
not aligning, with the actions of the City of Prince George.

Influences on Participants' Preferences for Sites
Like people in other northern communities (Knez & Thorsson, 2008), participants in
my research have adapted to Prince George's climate, which includes several months of
winter. Despite the snow and cold temperatures, participants reported actively using many
recreation sites in the wintertime. Even though children in general have been found to enjoy
winter more than adults do (Enai et al., n.d.), 46 of the 100 participants who were outside
enjoying winter activities reported having no children at home. This suggests that the adult
participants enjoy outdoor recreation in the snowy season, too, whether or not they have
children as a catalyst for spending time outside. Some of the participants had more negative
views of winter than others, but interestingly, they were mostly found at the Hart Ski Hill.

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These participants were not themselves actively engaged in outdoor recreation on the day
that they took part in the questionnaire, but were there to pick up children or grandchildren
who were skiing. These findings are in line with a previous study which found that "the
amount of people feeling uncomfortable and dissatisfied with the thermal environment was
higher when the only reason for being there was to meet someone, rather than other reasons"
(Nikolopoulou & Steemers, 2003, 98). This lack of participation implies the need for Prince
George to adopt the Scandinavian tradition of reminding people every year that winter can be
fun (COE, 2011).
In previous studies, Dwyer (1988) and Eliasson et al. (2007) found that weather
elements such as temperature, wind speed, amount of sun, and snow levels can affect not
only attendance at sites, but the way people feel about and perceive an outdoor recreation
site. My research found that the five most-used sites mitigated the negative weather elements
like wind, and had site features that fostered positive feelings towards the areas. Conversely,
sites that were avoided by my participants lacked climate considerations and weathermitigating features. While Dwyer (1988) found that he could predict attendance and uses in
an urban forest through a few weather phenomena, he admitted that snow proved to be the
most difficult variable. One of my participants mentioned that he stayed away from local ski
hills because they could not guarantee snow conditions. This comment is an outlier, to be
sure, but suggests that further research into the connection between snow conditions and
outdoor winter recreation is necessary.
Just as creating comfortable microclimates in urban centres positively affects use of
public spaces (Zacharias et al., 2001; Gehl, 2010), creating similar microclimates in outdoor
recreation sites adds to their attractiveness. Gehl (2010) and Ramsay (2013) argue that

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simple, unheated warming huts and shelters provide much-needed places to escape the winter
wind, and fires and heated spaces provide direct warmth. Their claims are supported by the
popularity of the two heated ski lodges, and the fire pits and shelters at the Nordic centre and
Forests for the World. Winnipeg, MB, has had great success in attracting a growing number
of residents to the Red River Mutual Trail by spacing warming huts along the skating trail
(Hargraves, 2014). This area was not well used in the winter before the huts were installed,
as it is barren and windy. The City of Prince George should explore whether or not installing
warming huts and fire pits would similarly increase the number of users in some parks. It is
important to note that even though many parks are not popular in winter, and they lack
simple amenities, they are still used by participants. A three- to five-year pilot project, even
with temporary amenities, would help to establish if other residents could be encouraged to
use parks more often in winter.
Another technique for increasing the comfort of a microclimate is capturing sunlight.
Cornelis (1999) reported that cafe owners favour locations that capture afternoon sunshine
for their patrons. My participants, too, favoured the sun-soaked balconies and areas adjacent
to the two ski lodges, and children chose sunny spaces over shady ones to play in. Park users
were also observed taking advantage of a sunny parking lot as a place to chat instead of the
adjacent shady park area. Positioning active and passive winter play areas so that they
receive direct sunlight is a simple, cost-effective way of designing recreation spaces for
increased winter comfort. Supplying movable elements, such as the benches at the Otway
Nordic Ski Centre, provides flexibility, allowing users to reposition furniture into the
sunshine as needed for increased thermal comfort. In addition, being able to move elements
around gives users an increased sense of perceived control over their environment, a

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psychological adaptation which widens "the range of environmental conditions considered as
comfortable" (Nikolopoulou & Steemers, 2003, p. 100).
There is very little in the existing literature that directly addresses the influences of
climate, weather and microclimate on users' choices of outdoor recreation sites in winter.
However, I believe that my research has filled some of the gap by showing that design
principles that make outdoor urban spaces popular in winter, such as sidewalk cafes that take
advantage of direct sunshine and wind shelter, translate to increased use of recreation spaces.
How those winter spaces are used will be addressed in the next section.

Influences on Choices of Recreational Activities
Canadian architect and urban planner Clement Demers (Landry, 2014) posits that
peoples' behaviours and activities change with the seasons because the landscape itself
changes. His claim is supported by my participants, who explained that they did not actively
avoid certain recreational sites in winter, but their activities changed, so they favoured
different sites. Nash ( 1981) suggests that this seasonal shift in recreational activities often
involves rule-bending behaviour. I did find evidence of this, particularly in regard to
snowmobile use within city limits. Nash (1981) argues that residents' adaptations to winter
behaviours and the climate should be recognized and capitalized upon, and he suggests that
municipalities be more lenient with residents, engaging them to find out what activities they
are participating in. Howard and Crompton (1984) state that targeting user groups in any
public consultation campaign is extremely important; however, it should be added that, when
some rule-bending is involved, any engagement must be delicately handled. As has already
been mentioned, results from previous research into Prince George residents' preferences for
outdoor recreation activities (City of PG, 2014c) and my results differ greatly. This disparity

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underlines the importance of identifying appropriate groups for consultation. In the next
chapter, I will outline future research for the City of Prince George, as I believe that further
public engagement is needed so that outdoor recreation funding and resources can be
allocated appropriately.

Perceptions of Future Development
Howard and Crompton (1984) found that many North American parks are under-used
because of a shortfall in facilities. My findings support their research, particularly in light of
the dearth of winter facilities and amenities in municipal parks in Prince George. A top-down
approach to (re)developing facilities should be avoided, though, as it can lead to assumptions
about activities. When the City of Charlottetown redesigned a park, it presumed that it knew
how the park was being used. At the public consultation stage, though, the city discovered
that residents engaged in multiple activities, and wanted infrastructure and amenities for
winter activities expanded (Robertson, 2014).
Like their counterparts in Charlottetown, my participants had many ideas for future
winter recreation development. They also felt strongly that the city should be involved in
some capacity, whether exclusively or through partnerships. In the recreation services
telephone survey (City of PG, 2014c), respondents placed parks at the top of the list of
outdoor recreation facilities that needed improvement. Currently, the City of Prince George
relies heavily on community and not-for-profit groups to develop winter recreation activities
and spaces. This model has resulted in existing specialized facilities being developed outside
municipal public spaces, leaving the more central, municipal parks under-developed and
under-used. I suggest the City of Prince George revisit its reliance on community groups,
focusing instead on partnerships to develop the existing, more central parks, and providing

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residents with more opportunities for winter recreation closer to home. This model is also
supported by the participants of my research, whose suggestions for improvements to
existing facilities, services and infrastructure outweighed their ideas for new recreation
opportunities.

Participants' Expectations and Municipal Actions
Best design practices for winter cities espouse five basic principles: blocking wind;
capturing sunlight; using colour; employing light creatively; and, providing winterappropriate infrastructure (City of St. Albert, 2009; Kuismanen, 2005; Pressman, 1995,
2004). The City of Prince George took a forward-thinking step by developing climatesensitive design guidelines that include all five principles, but previous research found that
the city has not yet done a good job of implementing them (Ryser & Halseth, 2008). My
findings confirm this, and show very little evidence of basic winter design elements in
municipal parks. In fact, the best examples of winter city design in recreation spaces are
found in the community group and private recreation developments, such as the Otway
Nordic Ski Centre and the Hart Ski Hill. The municipal budget will dictate how and when
municipal parks will be redeveloped; however, auditing some of the larger municipal parks
now for potential winter design interventions will provide a starting point for redesign
considerations later on. A basic cost-analysis would also be beneficial, as implementing some
elements will be simpler and cheaper than others.
The use of colour has been touted as a way to break up the stark, white urban winter
landscape (Pressman, 1995, 2004). Park areas with colour or visual interest were favoured by
the participants of my study, suggesting that splashes of colour are also important to winter
park users. Adding colour can be done relatively cheaply. Bright coloured paint on the doors

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of the outhouses at Otway Nordic Ski Centre not only add colour, but help trail users find the
latrines more easily when the roofs are covered in snow. The same could be done to the
outhouses in the other park spaces. Community groups could even be engaged to adopt a
door, or even trail markers or posts.
Many Scandinavian cities provide fireplaces for warmth and comfort, and snow
sculptures for a bit of whimsy in their urban public spaces (Pressman, 2004). Creative
lighting for nighttime, programmed winter activities to attract residents to the outdoors, and
comfortable seating that is cleared of snow all make the public realm and parks more
attractive in winter (Liittgen, 2002). Participants of my research expressed a desire for more
winter recreation opportunities in existing parks. The City of Prince George could employ
some of the Scandinavian techniques in select parks to make them more comfortable and
attractive to residents. This is especially true of the Civic Plaza and Veterans Park, as both
are shaded in the afternoon in winter, and users need warming elements of some kind to
make them more comfortable. Nearby Fort George Park also needs winter amenities to attract
more users.
Municipalities must take a leading role in encouraging residents to spend time outside
in winter (Liittgen, 2002; COE, 2011). My data support this model, with my participants
favouring the City of Prince George taking on a more active role in winter recreation
promotion. Mangold and Faulds (2009) argue that social media are excellent, cost-effective
ways for cities to engage residents more. Previous research in Prince George found that
almost half of respondents reported using the Internet to find out about activities and events
(City of PG, 2014c), despite the fact that current city parks websites offer little in the way of
winter information. On the other hand, only 10% cited the Active Living Guide as their

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source of information (City of PG, 2014c ), which is at odds with the comments I received
from city staff, who all named the Active Living Guide as the primary source for residents.
Currently, there is a disconnect between what participants are expecting the city to provide
for winter recreation promotion, and what is actually being delivered. Possible solutions and
suggestions for further research will be discussed in the next chapter.

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Chapter 6 Conclusions
My findings show that external factors influence participants' preferences for outdoor
winter recreation sites. Although participants may not be actively aware of these external
factors, site design, municipal policy, and promotion of activities all influence respondents'
choices of places to play in winter. The lack of attention to any of these elements by
municipalities, and the resulting effects on outdoor winter recreation activity levels,
specifically how they are interconnected, require further exploration.
The use of winter city design elements in an urban context is well understood
(Pressman, 1995). Indeed, microclimate conditions can even be used to predict the use of
downtown open spaces, and the activities which will be successful there (Zacharias et al. ,
2001). Ignoring winter in the planning process, however, has a long history in North America
(Coleman, 2002). Robertson (2014) describes winter as "the obnoxious cousin that landscape
architects tend to forget to invite to the party" (p. 27). One of the results of this long-standing
tendency to ignore winter is cold, windy, dark, and uncomfortable parks. In Prince George,
this has resulted in participants' choosing outdoor locations that are run by non-profit
organizations instead of the more centrally-located municipal parks.
Prince George has many park spaces within its municipal boundaries that have the
potential to be great winter recreation areas. The city could improve some sites by focusing
on what already exists, taking note of gaps in design, and upgrading facilities. Cottonwood
Island Park, for example, is already a year-round popular spot, but lacks a sunny area for
relaxing in the winter daytime, and lighting for nighttime use. Clearing a small area near the
parking lot and adding benches would provide a safe place for people to meet and chat,
instead of using the parking lot as they do now . Adding lights in the parking lot and along

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one of the main trails could encourage more hours of use in the winter months when the sun
sets early.
Taking steps to ensure that local winter design guidelines exist and are used comes
down to municipal policy and budget priority-setting. However, even when guidelines exist,
factors such as lack of knowledge or political will can result in the guidelines not being
implemented in new design (Ryser & Halseth, 2008). In many cases, as the City of
Edmonton (2013) has found, incorporating winter design is not a matter of new funding, but
rather of reallocating existing funds. Policy determines how much control a municipality
chooses to have over the development of recreation spaces and activities, and the most
successful model is probably one of having parallel short-term and long-term goals, and
actually following through with them. To reference the City of Edmonton again, it is now
into year three of its 10-year WinterCity Strategy, which includes a detailed implementation
plan (COE, 2013); however, a similar plan adopted by the municipal government in the early
1990s failed because no actual implementation plan was written.
Frisby, Reid and Ponic (2007) posit that an increasing number of Canadian
municipalities are using a business-oriented approach to recreation, and that while recreation
departments would argue that they are providing community development, they are, instead,
using community settings to manage programming. Hylton and Bramham (2008) suggest that
community sports development exists along a continuum, with groups in the community
developing programs for the sake of the sports themselves at one end, and groups "using
sport as a medium" for social development at the other (p. 53).
According to City of Prince George staff, the city as a corporation uses a community
development model for encouraging new recreation facilities and programs. As a result, the

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city has done little to develop outdoor winter recreation spaces, and has instead relied on the
objectives of special interest groups. These groups are now responsible for the development
and maintenance of many of the outdoor winter recreation spaces and programming, such as
the Ice Oval and the Otway Nordic Ski Centre. The public's use of the facilities is secondary
to the facilities' main purposes, which are to support the development of competitive Nordic
skiing and speed skating programs. Municipalities that use similar models must consider
whether their policies are really helping to develop community recreation, or if relying on
special interest groups is leaving municipal parks underdeveloped and underused.
Before making changes to community recreation sites, however, municipalities
should be cautious about making assumptions about how parks are being used. Howard and
Crompton (1984) found in a study of three American cities that a small proportion of adult
residents used municipal recreation spaces on a regular basis, and very few used specialized
facilities such as tennis courts and golf courses. They suggest that before shifting resources
and efforts of community recreation delivery elsewhere, "any answers to the issue of priority
in target markets must emerge from careful market research" (p. 47). As winter has largely
been ignored in planning outdoor spaces, and parks facilities have been 'closed for the
season' during winter in many northern municipalities, it would be prudent for municipalities
to conduct targeted research to find out who is using parks in winter, and how. Prince
George, specifically, would benefit from a re-evaluation of its public recreation services as
they pertain to winter activities, since the differences between my data and those collected in
the public survey for the Community Recreation Services Plan are striking.
Aside from design elements and municipal policy, promotion of winter activities and
events has an impact on participation levels. Howard and Crompton (1984) found that some

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residents did not participate in community recreation because they did not know what was
offered, or where to find the information. Disseminating information can be a challenge for
municipalities, especially if they have a small communications office as in Prince George.
Some researchers believe that many municipalities' campaigns are too broad. Johnson
Tew, Havits and McCarville (1999) posit that when municipalities promote recreation
information to all residents in the same format, the information can miss or be ignored by
specific segments of the population. A style that is attractive to millenials, for example,
might not appeal to residents over 70. Johnson Tew et al. argue that a broad communications
campaign is usually a result of budget and resource constraints. This is the case in Prince
George, where the city has limited funds and resources, and relies heavily on one seasonal,
printed brochure to promote winter recreation. A multi-pronged approach is one way to reach
more segments of the population, where information is passed to targeted groups, but also
shared with the general public in a variety of formats.
Edmonton, however, is having great success with sharing winter recreation
information through mixed media, providing formats that give choice to all residents. The
WinterCity Office produces an annual Winter Excitement Guide that gives details of all
festivals and special events from October to March, and also provides information on winter
activities and recreational sports. This guide is available in both a compact, attractive paper
booklet and an electronic pdf format. A bi-weekly electronic newsletter is also sent out
during the winter months, and the office has its own Facebook and Twitter accounts and a
blog site. Social media has been the strongest driver in spreading winter information in
Edmonton, which is evidenced by the increasing attendance at events, and the strong social
media analytics collected by the WinterCity Office.

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Mangold and Faulds (2009) argue that social media should be "an integral part of (an)
organization's IMC (integrated marketing communications) strategy" (p. 358). Not only can
social media be used to engage residents, but the format can provide up-to-date information,
discussions, and sharing of personal experiences (Mangold & Faulds, 2009). This form of
storytelling itself can be very a persuasive tool in marketing, since it conjures up images and
hypothetical personal scenarios for the reader (Tussyadiah & Fesenmaier, 2008). Residents'
shared stories and experiences can also be incorporated into a city's brand and image.
Stigel and Frimann (2006) argue that "city branding ... comes down to uncovering
and defining an 'identity' that can form the basis of communication to both internal and
external target groups" (p. 249). This is not without challenges, however, because of the
diversity of audiences (Stigel & Frimann, 2006). Alternately, Zavattaro (2010) argues that
cities can use "each service delivery opportunity as a chance to engage the public and
produce a certain image" (p. 206). The City of Prince George has already identified itself as a
winter city, but has not yet reflected this image in its publications, either external or internal.
Prince George and other northern cities that choose to capitalize on their winter experiences
can begin by simply integrating more winter photographs, the sharing of personal stories, and
more positive language around their winter assets in all of their documents and publications.
Encouraging local radio and television stations to do the same would change the collective
story around winter.
Climate change models project that Prince George will see an increase in
precipitation in the corning years, particularly in the winter (Pacific Climate Impacts
Consortium, 2009). This additional snowfall should be seen as a resource for winter
recreation, and possibly tourism, and the city should take steps to ensure that infrastructure

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and maintenance levels are in place to take advantage of it. However, hard infrastructure,
such as washroom facilities, is expensive and requires long-term planning for municipalities.
According to the city staff interviewees, Prince George' s budget is limited, and is not
projected to increase in the near future. The following options are ways that the City of
Prince George could improve outdoor winter recreation with little cost, in a short period of
time:
•

Hire a professional photographer to take high-quality photographs in order to
build an image bank of the city and its residents in winter. Ensure that winter
images are included in all city documents, whether for internal or external use.
This will help to normalize winter in the city' s culture, and increase positive
feelings towards the season.
Expand promotions of winter recreation activities and events, especially through
social media streams. An extra staff member or external contractor may be
required for this, but engaging the public is vital to encouraging residents to be
more active outdoors in winter.
Work with external recreation groups to encourage redevelopment of existing
municipal parks rather than the creation of new facilities on the edges of the city.
This will increase the number of recreation options closer to the city' s core.
Include winter programming in the new community celebration staff member' s
mandate and budget. This staff member should also look at existing facilities and
create partnerships. Fort George Park and the Exploration Place together, for
example, present an excellent opportunity for winter events and activities: they
are centrally-located; the park is sheltered and sunny; and, the Exploration Place

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offers indoor washrooms and a lobby to warm up in. There are also large
windows that provide a good indoor-outdoor relationship, although they do not
face the park itself.
Allocate a percentage of the existing parks budget to winter maintenance.
Currently, trails are only cleared in the winter if and when staff have time.
Shifting some of the existing budget from summer to winter resources will not
strain the budget, but will dedicate funds to winter trail clearing. The trail
locations should be chosen with care, and be well promoted, so that residents
know which trails can be accessed on a regular basis.
In order for all northern municipalities to have reliable data on which to base their
designs or redevelopments of parks spaces for multi-season use, more research is required in
three areas. First, a better understanding is needed of how winter design features, both
individually and collectively, affect park use. My research provides a base by showing that
participants are attracted to sites in which all five basic principles are present, but that they
will use sites that have only three or four elements. What is not clear is whether some of the
elements are more attractive than others, or if it is a combination of elements that creates a
comfortable space. This information is essential for urban planners and park designers in
northern communities when designing and developing outdoor spaces that are attractive to
users in all seasons.
Second, an investigation into factors that affect parents' choices of outdoor winter
recreation spaces is needed. Of all my participants, the only ones who did not list any of the
five most popular sites were parents of children under 18. Instead, they favoured recreation
sites that were closer to home and/or provided a sense of safety for their children. A venues of

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inquiry should include whether or not the following are critical factors in choosing outdoor
winter recreational sites: children' s ages; proximity to heated shelter with washroom and an
all-purpose area which could be used for warming up, changing into equipment, and having
snacks; whether or not access to facilities has a direct impact on the amount of time a family
will spend outside; and, cost of activities. Without data to really understand what affects
parents' choices, municipalities cannot make inclusive decisions around park planning and
design.
Third, the distance that residents are willing to travel in the winter to access
recreation sites needs to be better understood. Results from the questionnaires show that
location and ease of access to sites were very important to participants. Because of the
inherent risks of travelling in the winter, future research should explore how far a family will
travel from home for a winter activity day trip. This inquiry must include both participants
who have personal vehicles and those who primarily use public transportation. If possible,
family income levels should be included as a socio-demographic variable. This will provide
insight into whether or not some members of the population are being marginalized because
they have no means of getting to recreation sites that are outside their
neighbourhoods/community/municipality. This information will not only assist in
determining the best locations for future winter recreation sites, but will also inform
municipal policy with regard to the need for linking access to recreation spaces with public
transportation routes.
Fourth, some participants expressed feeling a lack of personal safety at some sites,
but for a variety of reasons. Personal safety in general in winter recreation sites is not an area
of literature that I reviewed before conducting my research. However, expressions of feeling

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unsafe add another layer to potential factors that discourage use of some sites. Further
exploration of these factors should lead to a better understanding of perceptions of personal
safety in recreation sites, and, if properly researched, should indicate whether or not winter
itself is a safety factor.
In conclusion, my research not only provides a better understanding of winter
recreation in Prince George, BC, specifically, but also of influences on outdoor winter
recreation in general. It has explored participants ' preferences for outdoor spaces and
activities, as well as site elements and municipal policies around winter recreation and park
design. For park planners who are interested in designing outdoor recreation spaces for all
seasons, this research provides qualitative data in the form of user input about site elements
that make a space more comfortable and inviting in winter. In addition, it is hoped that
northern municipalities will find this research useful when examining their own policies
around design guidelines, parks planning and maintenance, and promotion of outdoor winter
recreation. However, to forge their individual winter city identities, they will need input from
their residents with regard to where and how they play, or would like to play, in winter.

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139

Appendix 1 Research Information Form

I

,Ja.,

uru.. NORTHERN BRITISH COLUMBIA
UNIVERSITY OF

Research Information Form
This study, Where do you play in winter? An examination of winter outdoor recreation sites
in Prince George, BC, is being undertaken by Isla Tanaka (principal investigator) as partial
fulfillment for the requirements of a Master' s degree in the Natural Resources and
Environmental Studies program at the University of Northern British Columbia.
The purpose of this study is to examine winter recreation sites in Prince George, BC. The
study has 3 objectives:
1. To discover the preferred outdoor winter recreation sites in Prince George, BC;
2. To understand what design features (natural and man-made) attract residents to those
sites; and,
3. To explore local public policy that relates to where residents seek winter recreation.
As a participant in this research project:
1. You were selected because you were participating in a winter outdoor recreation
activity in Prince George, BC;
2. You will be asked to answer a short questionnaire delivered by the principal
investigator;
3. You will be asked to participate voluntarily in this study. You have the right to
withdraw at any time. Should you choose to withdraw, any information you have
provided will be withdrawn from the study and destroyed;
4. You will not be asked to provide any identifiable information; and,
5. You will be asked to voluntarily provide demographic data (gender, age and parental
status). This information will be used for statistical information only and will be
completely anonymous.
I, the researcher, agree to:
1. Keep confidential all research information shared with me. I will not discuss any
original research information with anyone outside my supervisory committee;
2. Keep all original research information and documents secure, either in a locked
storage cabinet, or on a password-protected hard drive; and,
3. Destroy or erase all original documents two years after the defence of the research
thesis.

140

The potential benefits of this research include:
1. A summary of the preferred sites for winter outdoor recreation in Prince George, BC;
2. A better understanding of site design elements that attract participants to winter
outdoor recreation sites; and,
3. A better understanding of how public policy relates to where residents participate in
winter recreational activities.
Results of this study will be posted on UNBC Blogs at http ://blogs.unbc.ca/. If you would
like to directly receive a summary of the research findings, please contact the principal
investigator at the contact information below.
Principal Investigator:
(print name)

(signature)

(date)

If you have any questions or concerns about this study, please contact:
Isla Tanaka (principal investigator): tanaka@unbc.ca (cellphone: 250-961-2564).
Annie Booth (project supervisor): annie@unbc.ca (UNBC office: 250-960-6649).
This study has been reviewed by the Research Ethics Board at the University of Northern
British Columbia. For complaints or questions regarding participants ' rights and ethical
conduct of research, contact the Office of Research and Graduate Programs at: reb@unbc.ca
(250- 960-6735).

141

Appendix 2 Questionnaire Questions
Questionnaire questions:
1. What are your three favourite outdoor sites for winter recreation in Prince George?
2. What activities do you participate in at each of those sites?
3. What do like about those sites? (E.g. design features, facilities, natural areas,
location.)
4. What site improvements would you like to see for each of those sites for winter use?
5. Are there sites you avoid in winter, and what is it about those sites that you don't like
for winter recreation?
6. What other winter recreation opportunities would you like to see developed over the
next 10 years?
7. Who do you think should be responsible for making this happen?
City
Other:

public/private partnership

private organisation

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~-

8. Would you be willing to pay a fee for a limited period to pay for such a project?
No

Yes

9. Any further comments?
For statistical purposes, we would appreciate it if you would indicate the following:
Gender:

female

male

undeclared

Age:

18-29

30-39

40-49

60-69

70-79

80-89

50-59
90+

Do you have children under the age of 18 living at home with you?

yes no

142

Appendix 3 Sample Section from Questionnaire Response Spreadsheet

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--~-

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QlC

"
!w1IIIMC,

!

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.
K'CflS pto<ftd. Sidewffl plowed. they
!wtttrfrornpottiolu aren'tufenls.

!

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__

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:c:arffid how mq, do l, peril~ p11nl

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,~

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SH<>unttylkl

,c_ommunity

'""'"

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!
:08 comments

laa

I

,!

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alwayswaklble

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ioth« K\Mtlff .

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!to tetout~uwmcn.

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. Populttlon • bit sm11I fOf kip!. babsf.ed.
!ic.flshq fmivat . Snowmobieandqu.id
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!1.otof111!Wty

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143

Appendix 4 Site Feature Recording Sheet
Site/Winter
Design
Features
Otway

Blocking Wind

Capturing Sunlight

Using Colour

•
•

•

Large sunlit stadium
Lodge built in sunny
area, south-facing
windows, seating area
& deck
Some open areas along
the trails

•

Picnic and dock area is
south-facing on the
north side of the lake,
so very sunny

•

Large sunlit area at
bottom of hill
Fairly open area close
to the parking lot with
picnic tables, otherwise
treed

•

White building with green
shutters
Other:
• Tree Spirit Carvings add
whimsy

Very sunny during the
day

•

Large tree stand
Trail s through the
trees

•
•

CGIFFTW

•

•
HSH

•

CIP

•
•

Natural setting with
mixed tree stand
(coniferous &
deciduous)
Trails through the
trees
Runs through the
trees
Natural setting with
mixed tree stand
(coniferous &
deciduous)
Trails protected
from the wind in the
trees
In a depression keeps some of the
wind off

•

•
•

•

•
•
•

•

Lodge with wood exterior
and bright red roof
Outhouses are colourful one has bright red door and
red roof
Some signs are colourful green snowshoe trail
Colourful cartoon characters
along some trails added a
touch of whimsy
Wooden signs are stained a
warm shade
Outhouses are not colourful
- concrete and sage green

Oval

•

Site/Winter
Desi11.n Features
• Otway

Winter Infrastructure

Lighting

Activities Observed

•

•

•
•
•

•
•
•

•
•
•
•
•
•

Cleared parking lot
Places to pile snow from parking lot
Fire pits
Easy access from road
Lodge with water & flu sh toilets;
waxing facilities; equipment rental ;
office for pass purchases, maps &
snacks
Biathlon range
Ski trails
Snowshoe trails
Signage along trails high enough to
see in deep snow
Outhouses, but sometimes the doors

•

Some lit
trails for
nighttime
skiing
Lit parking
lot

2015 for Canada Winter
Games: buildings - beige
stone & red, and wood with
red roof

•

•
•

Skiing
Snowshoeing
Sitting on benches in the
sun
Sitting on the deck
Standing around talking
Kids playing in the
snow

144

•

CG/FFTW

get snowed closed
Equipment
storage huts and area
•
Easy
access
from road, although the
•
road is bumpy
• Cleared parking lot at both ends
• Trails not cleared, but well used and
packed down
• Some trail signage
FFTW:

•

•

FFTW:

•

•
•

•

HSH

•
•
•
•
•

•
•
•

CIP

•

•
•
•
•
•

•

Oval

•
•
•

•
•
•
•

•

Outhouse - door snowed open or
closed
Garbage cans, but barely out of the
snow
Information/educational signs high
enough out of the snow
Fire pit & picnic table - buried in
the snow
Picnic shelter & picnic tables
Dock
Access to ice fishing
Easy access from road
Cleared parking lot
Lodge with running water, flush
toilets, cafeteria & equipment rental
Coloured signage
Equipment storage area
Easy access from road
Cleared parking lot
Info sign and trail map
Outhouse
Trails packed down by users, some
might have been cleared, but it was
hard to tell
Picnic benches
Trail map sign
Easy access from road
Cleared parking lot
Picnic benches
Outhouse
2015 for Canada Winter Games:
office building and a heated skatechange area
Zamboni storage shed

•

CG:

•

•
•
•

Parking lot
not lit.
Trails not
lit.

•
•
•

•

Parking lot
not lit.
Trails not
lit.
Shane Lake
picnic area
not lit.

•

Lit for
night
skiing

•
•
•
•

•

No lights
in parking
lot or on
trails

•

Parking lot
lit.
Oval lit for
night use.

•

•
•

Walking
Walking dog
Snowshoeing
Cross-country ski tracks
Observing nature and
other people and
socializing at the
dock/picnic area, in the
sun

•

•
•
•

•

•
•

Downhill skiing
Snowboarding
Telemark skiing
People were sitting
outside in the sunshine
against the building
Walking
Snowshoeing
Walking dogs
Dogs off-leash
Socializing

Skating - recreational
and speed skating
Socializing
Waiting for skaters
Enjoying hot drinks &
snacks

145

Appendix 5 Selection of Content Analysis Spreadsheet
Document name

-·
--

j Ice and related terms

# outdoo, winter
scenM

Other winter terms used

--

p. H Flonl I"'""" CINaJilt /I

Snow<hoel'•re

__

Mom_ fl

Total# outdoor
photos

0

......,..

P.11 ThewoodcNpand..-polhslnMoont's

rar11s,~

4

[tt...-eoncl

p.54 a-·.... enc1 ..... 111e1ce1 ii Atlhe
Outdoot ~ - the CMt Centre . . . .,,. d®r

-Convnu,,ity-.. . - .......

p. 54 Ccld Wl!•t!it!fls no to be illac:IM. II Feel I ol P11o1G1 u,p to-clown•--- hil, try
POI lndudo . .

•botta•nlnt. /I ~ n ~ n g lN,pnwttlllhe llle-11111
-••formf/1-trltlspCftatfon //Gd
anl\<indude

thebo..l, t h e ~ 0<the Elbontre. (slc.J •••
WhotlNlr 11'11 INurely sbta It the Qvll: l'tozl in1he .,__.buld1 >00Wm,)n. // luldlllsasoowman

allp-oil'a,1..__.., . . . . . . .

.........-Outdoot-PrtnceGeol19hll

toffllllllillllor-.

pn,,,tdjlsan--..i.~-to111t,....

,...,.,on,luy-dly. // AttheOutdoot
bingatlheCMl:Conltol'lal,_ol_ _

eon,--, Assodatlolt ""'Outdoor Ice Nnb, the Ice

°"

...-o1.-IL•.notlndudollVlow

~pl,ocm)

Oval, the CGlioeuf!I Cf the Elbont,e. (sic.) ••• Wbell,e(

146

Appendix 6 Selection of Term Analysis Table
Name of
document

OCP 2001

OCP 2011

Total#
pages

Terms used

3

#of
pages
term
appears
on
3

109

snow

4

3

109

ice
winter

0
20

0
18

109
247

winter environment
winter garden
winter landscape
snow clearing
snow dumps
snow storage site
snowmelt

snow

23

25

247

Term

#of
times
used

winter

2015 Canada Winter Games
overwintering habitat
ungulate winter range
ungulate winter range habitat
winter - 4
Winter 2015 Canada Games
winter city - 4
winter city concerns
winter city design
Winter City Design
Winter Design approaches
winter months - 2
winter traction material
heavy snowfall
municipal snow disposal sites
snow - 3
snow (and ice) control
snow clearing
snow disposal
snow disposal sites
snow management
snow management facilities
Snow management facilities
snow management facility
Snow management facility(s)
snow melt runoff - 2
snow melting facilities
snow storage

147

Appendix 7 Interview Questions

1. Is winter a core part of Prince George's identity?

2. What does the City do in its publications to embrace and reflect the winter identity?
3. Where does the City currently share information about winter recreation?
4. What is the City's current policy towards partnerships for delivering winter recreation
opportunities?
5. My research shows that there is growing demand for more winter recreation
opportunities, and the public seems to support the P3 approach. How does the City
see more partnerships happening?
6. Do you use a winter lens when planning new parks, parks renewal, programming,
operations, and maintenance?
7. There appears to be no winter maintenance service level program in the Parks and
Open Spaces Master Plan (2008). Does the City list a maintenance program for City
parks in winter elsewhere?
8. I noticed that the washrooms in Fort George Park and Camey Hill Park are closed in
winter. Do you know why they are closed for the winter season?
9. My research shows that people avoid playgrounds in winter because they can't access
them through the snow. Is there a possibility that the City could address this?
10. Do you have any other comments or suggestions you'd like to share?

148

Appendix 8 E-mail Message to Potential Interview Participants

Hello (Name),
I am a graduate student at UNBC, researching winter outdoor recreation spaces in Prince
George. I surveyed 100 residents to find out where they like to play in winter and what
their favourite activities were in those spaces. I have also looked at the top five
recreational spaces from a planning and design perspective to see if there are common
elements that might attract people to those spaces.
I am contacting you because I would also like to find out what policies and procedures
the City of Prince George has towards outdoor recreation spaces in winter. I would very
much like to sit down with you for about an hour to talk about policies in your area of
work that relate to parks in winter. If you believe that I should talk to someone else
instead, could you please provide me with their name and contact information?
I am attaching an information letter/consent form that gives a bit more detail about my
project and the potential benefits to you for participating. I would be very happy to share
all of my findings with you on completion of my project.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Regards,
Isla Tanaka.
MNRES Candidate, UNBC

149

Appendix 9 Participant Information Letter and Consent Form

f

,Jae

II/WU

UNIVERSITY OF
NORTHERN BRITISH COLUMBIA

Participant Information Letter and Consent Form
August 15th, 2015
Where do you play in winter? An examination of winter outdoor recreation sites in Prince
George, BC

Project Lead: Isla Tanaka
University of Northern British Columbia
Prince George, BC V2N 4Z9
tanaka@unbc.ca and/or 780-975-8813
Why are we doing this study?
The purpose of this study is to examine winter recreation sites in Prince George, BC. The
study has three objectives:
1. To discover the preferred outdoor winter recreation sites in Prince George, BC;
2. To understand what design features (natural and man-made) attract residents to those
sites; and
3. To explore local public policy that relates to where residents seek winter recreation.

Why you are being asked to take part in this study?
You are being invited to take part in this research study because you work for the City of
Prince George, BC, in an area that is responsible for parks planning, maintenance, Citycommunity partnerships, and/or parks/recreation communications.
If your position requires that you receive approval from a supervisor to undertake this
interview, I ask that you receive that approval prior to this interview.
Your participation in this study is entirely voluntary, and you will not be asked to provide
any identifiable information. You are free to ignore any questions that make you feel
uncomfortable. You also have the right to completely withdraw from the study, at which time
any information you have provided will be withdrawn and destroyed, unless you explicitly
agree to your information being retained and analysed.

150

What will happen during the project?
You will be asked to participate in an interview delivered by the project lead, Isla Tanaka.
One week before the scheduled interview, ten interview questions will be e-mailed to you, in
case you would like to prepare.
The interview should take about an hour. It can take place in your office, or in a quiet public
place that you are comfortable in as the interviews will be recorded to maintain accuracy
when analysing your responses. I will transcribe the interviews myself to further protect your
anonymity.

Is there any way that participating in this study could harm you?
Because Prince George is a small city and I am selecting key informants from City
administration, it is possible that someone could identify one of the participants simply by
being familiar with the locale. While I cannot guarantee your complete anonymity, I will do
whatever I can to mask your identity within my reporting.
Within two weeks of the interview, I will provide you with a two-page summary of what we
talked about and a few key quotes that I may want to use. You will have a chance to clarify
or amend any of your initial responses or to add any new information as you see fit.
All interviews will be referred to by number in the analysis.

What are the benefits of participating?
I hope that I will be able to give you a better understanding of the preferred sites for winter
outdoor recreation in Prince George, site design elements that attract participants to those
sites, and how public policy relates to where residents participate in winter recreational
activities.
I will give you your choice of a summary report and/or a copy ofmy thesis. If you would like
me to give a presentation of my findings as well, I would be happy to do so.

How will your privacy be maintained?
As mentioned above, I will do everything I can to maintain your confidentiality. All
interviews will be referred to by number in the analysis. The interview identification key,
along with transcripts, copies of the audio recordings, consent forms, field notes and contact
information will be kept, locked, in my graduate supervisor's office on the UNBC campus.
Only my supervisor and I will have access to the raw interview data. Two years after the
thesis has been defended, all personally-identifiable data will be destroyed.
151

Will you be paid for your time/ taking part in this research study?
No, you will not be paid for taking part in this research project, but I would be happy to buy
you coffee in exchange for your time.
Where can you find the results of this research study?
The results of this study will be reported in a graduate thesis and may also be published in
journal articles and books. As mentioned above, I would be happy to share the results with
you in a summary, in a full copy of my thesis, or with a presentation.
A project blog is also being kept at http: //blogs.unbc.ca/tanaka. The blog is only intended as a
way to provide participants, and the general public, with an overview of my research results.
No personally-identifiable information will be posted.
Whom can you contact if you have questions about the study?
If you have any questions about what we are asking of you, please contact me, the project
lead, or my graduate supervisor, Dr. Annie Booth (UNBC office: 250-960-6649). My contact
information is listed at the top of the first page of this form.

Whom can you contact if you have complaints or concerns about the study?
If you have any concerns or complaints about your rights as a research participant and/or
your experiences while participating in this study, contact the UNBC Office of Research at
250-960-6735 or by e-mail at reb@unbc.ca

152

Participant Consent and Withdrawal
Taking part in this study is entirely up to you. You have the right to refuse to participate in
this study. If you decide to take part, you may choose to pull out of the study at any time
without giving a reason and without any negative impact on you.
Consent
I have read or have had described the information presented in the information letter about
the project:
YES
NO
I have had the opportunity to ask questions about my involvement in this project and to
receive additional details I requested.
YES
NO
I understand that if I agree to participate in this project, I may withdraw from the project at
any time up until the report completion, with no consequences of any kind. I have been
given a copy of this form.
YES
NO
If necessary, I have received approval from my supervisor to participate in this interview
NO
NOT NECESSARY
YES

I agree to be recorded.
YES

NO

Follow-up information (e.g. transcription) can be sent to me at the following e-mail or
mailing address:
NO
YES

Mailing address:
Signature (or note of verbal consent):
Name of Participant (Printed):
Date:

153

Appendix 10 Interview Protocol for Interviews with City of Prince George Staff

Interviewee Name

Interviewee Title/Position

Interviewee Department

Interviewer

Isla Tanaka

Introduction
Thank you for agreeing to see me.
To facilitate my note-taking, and to allow for the most accurate records of the interview, I
would like to record our conversation today. Before we start, please read the information
letter, and complete and sign the consent form.
Do you have any questions?
Thank you for agreeing to participate. I would like to remind you that you may ask to skip a
question or to stop at any time if you feel uncomfortable. Two weeks from now, I will be
giving you a summary of our discussion, and some key quotes that I might like to use in my
thesis. You will have a chance to comment and/or revise the information that I send you.
There are ten questions planned for this interview. I expect we will be done in about an hour.
If it looks like time is running short, I may have to ask you to provide short answers so that
we can get through all the questions.
As I mentioned when I contacted you, I requested to speak to you because in your position
with the City of Prince George, you deal with parks planning, park maintenance, Citycommunity partnerships, and/or communications for parks and/or recreation. My study is not

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meant to find out about or evaluate your personal qualifications or experiences. Rather, I
would like to understand how City policy and procedures affect your duties.
Interviewee Background
How long have you been:
• Employed by the City of Prince George?
•

In your present position?

What is your favourite outdoor winter activity?
Questions
11. Is winter a core part of Prince George's identity?
12. What does the City do in its publications to embrace and reflect the winter identity?
13. Where does the City currently share information about winter recreation?
14. What is the City's current policy towards partnerships for delivering winter recreation
opportunities?
15. My research shows that there is growing demand for more winter recreation
opportunities, and the public seems to support the P3 approach. How does the City
see more partnerships happening?
16. Do you use a winter lens when planning new parks, parks renewal, programming,
operations, and maintenance?
17. There appears to be no winter maintenance service level program in the Parks and
Open Spaces Master Plan (2008). Does the City list a maintenance program for City
parks in winter elsewhere?
18. I noticed that the washrooms in Fort George Park and Camey Hill Park are closed in
winter. Do you know why they are closed for the winter season?
19. My research shows that people avoid playgrounds in winter because they can't access
them through the snow. Is there a possibility that the City could address this?
20. Do you have any other comments or suggestions you'd like to share?
Thank you for your time.

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Appendix 11 Sample Interview Question Recording Sheet

1. Where does the city currently share information about winter recreation?
Interview 1

•
•

•

•
Interview 2

•
•
•

The Active Living Guide is the main marketing tool for the
city and community groups to advertise winter recreation
opportunities, both indoor and outdoor.
The city also uses its website and social media channels .
Many community associations also have their own websites
to promote their programs and events.
City partners, such as the Ice Oval and Otway Nordic Ski
Centre, have their own marketing tools.
Through media releases, social media posts, and the Active
Living Guide.
Examples: a 'learn to make ice' workshop for community
associations; skating days in the park; and, free skates.
Does a lot of promotions for recreation and cultural services
to help promote winter activities through media releases and
social media posts, and helps with imagery.

Interview 3

•

Could only think of the Active Living Guide .

Common Themes

•

Active Living Guide is the main instrument for sharing winter
recreation info.
Social media - sometimes share info about community
activities.

•

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