Interpretive Centre

Roughly in the centre of the park is our Interpretive Pavilion, an open-sided, roofed shelter with benches turned inward at the edges of the structure. This is a good design for outdoor education. It is a focal point for students to gather and pay attention, and the roof provides some acoustical effects to help an instructor be heard. It provides shelter from sun, showers and some wind. Yet because it is open on all sides, it provides proximity to the changing natural world. The pavilion is oriented so that the four sides face north, south, east and west.


The valences added to the centre in 2003 are engraved with quotes from a variety of sources and all pertain to nature. They include the following pearls of wisdom :

Diversity is the spice of life -Robert Bateman
Let nature be your teacher - William Wordsworth
Man's heart away from nature becomes hard -Standing Bear
We all live downstream -David Suzuki
Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished -Lao Tzu
One touch of Nature makes the whole world kin -William Shakespeare
Environment is a process, not a container -Marshall McLuhan

The pavilion was designed by Peter Skira of Eric Connelly Architects, and was built in 2000 mainly by Peter Smucki. David Rose's woodshop classes at Georgetown District High School designed the benches and did the cladding of the columns. Hickory Falls Ratepayers' Association built the benches. The materials used were chosen to impact the environment in a minimal way while providing a strong physical structure.

David Rose and the Georgetown District High School Tech. Dept. students that helped to make and install the valances. June 2003