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COVINGTON, KY - Friday, September 19, 12pm-8pm, in cities around the globe, artists, activists and citizens will temporarily transform metered parking spaces into public parks and other social spaces, as part of an annual event called "PARK(ing) Day."
Locally, Covington's newest outdoor event space, Madlot, will become a mini-golf course. The course will feature nine unique holes designed by local businesses and is free, family-friendly, and open to the public. The course opens at noon and will stay open until 8pm.
Madlot is the parking lot at the corner of West 7thStreet and Washington Street in downtown Covington. Renaissance Covington recently spearheaded a creative transformation of this lot into an outdoor performance park.
Covington's participating businesses and organizations include Hub + Weber, MKSK, Roebling Point Books and Coffee, flow-a shop for men, NKY Incubator Kitchen, Covington Farmers Market, and Dragon's Hoard.
Originally invented in 2005 by Rebar, a San Francisco-based art and design studio, PARK(ing) Day challenges people to rethink the way streets are used and reinforces the need for broad-based changes to urban infrastructure. "In urban centers around the world, inexpensive curbside parking results in increased traffic, wasted fuel and more pollution," says Rebar's Matthew Passmore. "The planning strategies that generated these conditions are not sustainable, nor do they promote a healthy, vibrant human habitat. PARK(ing) Day is about re-imagining the possibilities of the urban landscape."
Since 2005, the project has blossomed into a worldwide grassroots movement: PARK(ing) Day 2011 - the last year statistics were collected -- included 975 "PARK" installations in more than 160 cities in 35 countries on six continents. Though PARK(ing) Day now longer tracks the number of PARKs each year, the project continues to expand to urban centers across the globe.
PARK(ing) Day is an "open-source" user-generated invention created by independent groups around the globe who adapt the project to champion creative, social or political causes that are relevant to their local urban conditions. More information regarding local PARK(ing) Day activities can be found at facebook.com/renaissancecovington and a global map of all participating cities are available on the PARK(ing) Day website, at parkingday.org.
Event Details
What: Park(ing) Day
When:Friday, September 19, 12p.m.-8p.m.
Where:Madlot, corner of 7th and Washington Streets, Covington
Contact:Katie Mayer, 859-292-2166, kmeyer@covingtonky.gov
Renaissance Covington is a non-profit organization aimed at revitalization of Covington's historic downtown through the National Main Street approach.
About Rebar(www.rebargroup.org). Founded in 2004 in San Francisco, Rebar is an internationally recognized art and design studio operating at the intersection of art, design and ecology.
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