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| Puddled light London, ON December 2023 This photo originally shared on Instagram |
It was supposed to be a shining example of 1960s placemaking, surrounded by a concert hall, apartments, stores, and the seat of government - all across the street from the city’s marquee park.
You know what they say about the best-laid plans, right?
The surrounded-by-concrete design hasn’t aged well, and the space is usually empty and windswept, the only sounds made by garbage skittering in between the crumbling paving blocks. I’d hate to imagine getting around here in a wheelchair.
Yet as the sun disappears for the night and the cold seeps through my mittens, I wander away from a nearby crowd to feel the energy of a place most Londoners prefer to ignore. The entrance to City Hall casts a brilliant, almost beacon-like light onto the broken ground below. It feels like an invitation.
The space is far from perfect, reflecting design concepts that were obsolete almost before the paint was first dry. But imperfect doesn’t mean without merit, and on this cold night in this cold world, it feels comforting to take in the oasis-like light from the very centre of our city.
Accepting imperfection as it is. Applies to public squares. Applies elsewhere, too.
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Related:
A beacon in the fog, January 2023
Reg Cooper would likely approve, December 2022
The grocery store at night - Part 1, October 2020
Empty bus shelter, June 2020
Homelessness in the light of the 7-Eleven, August 2019
Pools of light before we continue the journey, February 2019
Pools of light, October 2010
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