Pop-up Park

Pop-up Park at the Pétanque, Weighbridge Pl, St Helier

The pop-up park was based on community engagement that showed a desire for more public green spaces in St Helier (Gibb, 2022). Public Voice: Common Ground partnered with Jersey Development Company, Antony Gibb Ltd, GROW Jersey, Acorn Industries, Creative Island Partnership and Government of Jersey to deliver a temporary park in central St Helier. The aim was to illustrate the value of this, to show what’s possible and to gather further feedback regarding longer-term public realm improvement.

The design brief was to transform a previously hard landscape into a multi-use space. The design involved laying a temporary lawn and incorporating an existing pétanque pitch within a softer, more inviting landscape.

What happened

• Total dwell time went from 168 minutes before to 503.17 minutes after installation in a 30-minute period.

• 97% (based on 178 chalk board responses) said they wanted the grass to stay.

• Use of the site changed from somewhere to pass through, to somewhere to meet, exercise and stay.

• Behavioural change included a local resident volunteering as honorary site guardian and a reduction in vandalism.