More and more sports parks are turning into open sports parks. These sports parks are not only a place for sports clubs, but also for other social initiatives. In this article we present three examples of open sports parks in the Netherlands.
What is an open sports park?
There are different names for an open sports park: open sports park, dynamic sports park, public sports park, multifunctional sports park, meeting sports park, community park and free-access sports park. The idea is the same: a sports park that is fairly integrated into the (public) space and is more than just a place for associations and their members to practice their sport.
Examples of open sports parks
Sports Park de Veradiming, The Hague
Sportpark De Verademing is a sports park in the Segbroek district of The Hague. In the city center there is a complex with two artificial grass fields, a riding school, tennis courts, a large playground, a basketball and football field, a small skate park and a running and skating track about 1 km around the park. The sports park consists of a public part and a part that is opened and closed by the administrator. The managed part of the park has regular users: Doestal De Verademing (part of Stichting Paard Klep & Co) and SC REMO Football Club, which has a canteen and changing rooms. Tennis courts can be rented through the municipality. In the presence of the manager, everyone can use the sports grounds.
Nour Ismail from the municipality of The Hague mentions a number of bottlenecks: “Frictions sometimes arise when SC REMO needs football pitches for training, but young people from the neighborhood still use them. These types of transitions can be difficult.”
Shared use of the existing facilities also requires good agreements between the municipality and the residents of the sports park. Certainly if a certain party, for example a gym, is responsible for these facilities.
What is also a hot topic within the municipality, but is currently being worked on, is the ownership and management of the sports park. The municipality is made up of different departments, each with different responsibilities and goals. It takes constant attention and a clear delineation of responsibilities to manage the situation in the sports park. If this is not arranged properly, things can be left behind and the focus cannot be shifted to the future.
So Nour gives advice to other municipalities that work with open sports parks: “Make sure that good reciprocal agreements are made and that they are also recorded in cooperation agreements, maintenance and management agreements. This prevents ambiguity and problems at a later stage.”
Learning and Sports Parc de l’Inglete, Vendam
Where B Veendam once played professional football, where the stadium stood with one of the most famous names from Dutch professional football – De Langeleegte – is now a sports and practice park for all residents of Veendam. When BV Veendam went bankrupt in 2013, the question was what to do with the stadium and two practice pitches. Winkler Prins College needed new accommodations, and the cycling and judo associations were also looking for new accommodations. The combined demand for a place to exercise and exercise led to the decision to bring these elements together in one central location: De Langeleegte Learning and Sports Park.
The Learning and Sports Park (LSP), which opened in 2022, is largely open to the public and consists, among other things, of the football fields at Veendam 1894, a bike path of about 2 kilometers in length, two public ASM sports fields, and a dojo, a track Pumping, skate park and free track. The total sports park also includes the grounds of the MHC Daring hockey club, the golf course, baseball fields at The Blokes, and alternative tennis and Veendam.
LSP was established in cooperation with all affiliated parties to the local sports convention in Veendam. Secondary education has also been added. To develop the pumptrack, there was a direct collaboration with the ski community in the area. They have made sure that the design meets their needs, which is reflected in the use and experiences of the users. It has become a design in which the flow of skiing is good.
According to Mark Bakker, sports team leader in the municipality of Vendam, the success of the establishment of this sports park is due, among other things, to a long-term commitment, long-term vision and political support. He also mentioned an enthusiastic group of physical education teachers and the participation of all stakeholders as important success factors.
The challenges of the future lie in long-term management and maintenance. Since there are so many different users in the park, simultaneous use of all parts of the park is a challenge. It is important that different users have a good understanding and communication with each other. The municipality has an important coordinating role in this, for example by planning and organizing user consultations.
The reservation system regulates interchangeable use. Mark Packer says that a broad study of the use and sporting and social effects of LSP is highly desirable. Research design is currently being developed.
Sports Park De Parkweg, Harderwijk
Sports Park De Parkweg is located in Harderwijk. It features a hockey club, football club, Geo de Paul, indoor and outdoor pool, gyms, MBO (Landstede Sport & Exercise), beach volleyball club, concert hall and private gym. There is also an inline skating rink, a gymnasium, and a public skate park. The rest of the sports park is only accessible when the fencing is opened by the sports park manager or an association.
Monique Menin is the sports park manager at De Parkweg, appointed through the GA! Hardwicke. She says that in the beginning the intention was that all the sports park gates would be open and everyone could enter and exit the sports park. This led to inconvenience and vandalism. Then the municipality had to consider whether to close the gates again. But the goal of making better use of the accommodations in the sports park and using them for social (and commercial) activities remained the same. The sports park manager plays an important role in this. It connects the parties, arranges for regular consultations and is the point of contact for associations and other organizations in the sports park and for parties outside the sports park who wish to use the facilities.
Since the sports park has an open character, the cooperation between various parties has increased significantly. One association withdrew shortly after the signing of the covenant between stakeholders. However, it was concerned about the new target groups in their places of residence and set its own terms, which led to the breakdown of official cooperation. Communications with the association are very good and we hope to re-join officially in the future.
De Parkweg’s success and the sports park manager’s role in this led the municipality to decide to appoint a sports park manager for three other sports groups, as the sports parks in Harderwijk are called. Monique gives the most important advice: “Hire a sports park manager to relax the sports providers, make connections and be a point of contact. They feel supported by that.” She also points out that it is important that the activities also relate to the local sports convention and municipal policy. This way you create an open and successful sports park.
for work
Would you like to start giving your municipality’s sports parks a more open feel? Then read the advice sheet on creating an open sports park. In it you will find tips on how to turn your (indoor) sports park into an open sports park or how to develop existing open sports parks. The advice sheet contains promising measures, challenges, and practical advice.