This Frontier Has Pipes: Women Reimagining Public Space in Bridgeland
The ladies at the heart of this story inspired us to embrace Stampede this year—a time when Calgarians celebrate bold moves, community spirit, and getting our hands dirty. This is the first of what I hope will be an ongoing series: highlighting the people and projects at the new urban frontier - that question the status quo and prototype new ways of living together.
Heather Chapple had a question: How can we build better connections with seniors living in long-term care in Bridgeland?
It was a question that had surfaced before, motivating interest in intergenerational living through the East Riverside Master Plan. Heather’s observations brought a more detailed lens. An urban strategist with years of experience at the intersection of city systems and community wellbeing - and now partner at The Good Future Co - she started looking closely at the streets around long-term care facilities.
In Bridgeland, Carewest George Boyack—home to more than 200 seniors, many living with dementia—is just blocks away from cafes, parks, and shops. But infrastructure and street design didn’t make those destinations feel accessible. Residents were often cut off from their own community. As she dug further, she noticed something crucial: our city’s age-friendly policies weren’t translating into age-friendly streets.
After chatting with the management team at Carewest George Boyack, it became clear they too wanted more ways to connect with the neighbourhood and connect residents to their neighbours. Together with the Bridgeland-Riverside Community Association, a coalition of neighbours, families and community partners called Friends of Centre came together to reimagine the area around George Boyack.
Friends of Centre began by focusing on the street directly in front of Carewest, aiming to influence its future redesign—and, in the meantime, prototype what more inclusive design could look like. That early work took shape through tactical urbanism: temporary curb extensions, painted crosswalks, and signage reminding drivers that Centre Avenue could be a shared space.
As momentum built, Luli Morar, founder of Northern Land Studio, joined the project and brought with her the concept of The Caboodle—a flexible public space model developed in collaboration with Sustainable Calgary.
Luli has long been interested in how public spaces can adapt to ephemeral needs—not just long-term uses, but shifting, seasonal, or momentary ways that people interact with their environment. During the pandemic, she explored this further with ideas like The Archipelago, a modular system for safe social connection, and The Accordion Street, a vision for Memorial Drive that could flex in response to changing conditions.
In Bridgeland, she saw an opportunity to adapt the Caboodle to a new context: the Carewest parking lot. The idea was to create a dementia-friendly, intergenerational plaza where residents and neighbours could safely connect.
They brought the concept to Nathalie, the Carewest manager, who not only said yes—she helped make it happen. Nathalie organized volunteers, sought out donations, and helped build the space herself.
Together, Friends of Centre transformed the parking lot into a lively public realm. Luli’s design included shaded seating, a ground mural, a “Just Be” zone, and even a basketball hoop. There were planters and sensory elements, with layout features to support memory and orientation. Over time, the Caboodle evolved: a hay cow in the fall, a pop-up forest in the winter, ice cream parties, live music, and movie nights.
I had the chance to join a few sessions—early brainstorming, painting, planting, and shoveling. And while I was there, I gotta say the ladies really showed up to shovel rocks and dirt, plants trees and paint asphalt.
The Caboodle is no longer in place—you can’t go visit it today. It was a prototype, a grand experiment, intended to give us a sense of what’s possible and to expand the conversation about what the standards of long term care could be. It changed what a lot of people think is possible: facility staff and leaders, families of people with dementia, the Bridgeland community, builders who donated time and materials to the space. And now, I hope you too.
Here’s a Stampede salute and a tip of the hat to everyone who made the Bridgeland Caboodle a reality - and here’s to what it inspires next!
Many thanks to the supporters and champions who made this work possible. Celia Lee + Sustainable Calgary, Ali McMillan, Ola, Adam Schwartz and the team at ActivateYYC, Stepping Stones and the Calgary Foundation, Jess Huffman and the Bridgeland Riverside Community Association, and the whole team at George Boyack Carewest!
This Stampede season, we’re raising funds to build the next generation of School Streets in Calgary—because the new frontier isn’t out on the range. It’s right here in our neighbourhoods.
With your support, we turned a bold student idea into the Connaught Open Street—a safer, more playful space outside Connaught School that’s now permanent.
We’ve also got funding to prototype two more School Streets. But that funding only covers the basics. To go further, to support communities, engage students, evaluate impact, and push for permanent change, we need your help.
Donate $30 or more and we’ll send you a limited-edition Summer Fun in the City Postcard Pack
Each pack includes 5 postcard invites and instructions for unique summer activities to do with your friends. You can also grab a pack at Pages Books for $30 with proceeds supporting our work!
