Firemen's Park - Rosati, Anthony - Local Landscape Report

ABSTRACT

Firemen's Park is a landmark in the city of Niagara Falls and is home to many interesting features and events. The 135-acre landscape is located on the corner of Dorchester Road and Mountain Road in Niagara Falls and is run by the Stamford Center Volunteer Firemen's Association (SCVFA). The park itself has many things to offer including hiking trails, picnic tables, a fishing pond, and a large playground. The park showcases the beauty of the Niagara Escarpment and its ecological features, as the area is rich with a variety of plants, animals and distinct traits of the Escarpment due to its many hills and slumps in the landscape. One of Firemen's Parks' popular fairly new additions is the leash free dog park. This is an example of how humans and their needs shape landscapes. Due to many people having dogs as pets, the SCVFA realized they needed to adapt. The cultural emphasis when it comes to Firemen's Park is more than meets the eye. The landscape continuously hosts events that bring locals together for a good night. These events include the annual carnival, Thursday Blues concerts, and Stargazing events lead by an astronomy club. Firemen's Park also promotes the cultural value of giving back to its community. Often times the events they host have an element of paying it forward. For example, during their Summer Daze BBQ event this past summer, monetary donations were accepted to help local charities such as Project Share and No One Goes Hungry.

I. LOCATION INFORMATION

Municipality: Niagara Falls

Local area name: N/A

Other identifying names or descriptions: North End of Niagara Falls

Latitude and longitude: 43.1387° N, 79.1143° W

Physical Dimensions

Length: 905.29m. Width: 355.94m

Surface Area: Approximately 85 acres

Elevation: Highest / lowest point

152m / 219m

II. GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF YOUR LOCAL LANDSCAPE

Firemen's Park is located on the North end of Niagara Falls in the municipality of Niagara. It is located in very close proximity to the municipality of Stamford and the city of Niagara on the Lake. When examining the dimensions, I found the length by measuring the top of the actual park on Dorchester/Mountain road to the edge of the property past the pond in Google Earth. For the width I also used Google Earth to measure the most Western part of the park, which is the dog park and measured it to the most Eastern part which is Dorchester Road. I got the surface area of approximately 85 acres by linking all of my measured points in Google Earth and using its calculation. For the Highest/Lowest point, I used the mouse on Google Earth to find the highest elevation and lowest elevation. Firemen's Park is interesting for this aspect because the front of the landscape where the children's park is located is at a much higher elevation than the back area of the park that contains the pond.

III. MAP

Map Caption

Map Figure 1.0: 3D View of Firemen's Park via Google Maps. (Full Google Map Citation in Bibliography)

How Firemen's Park has Changed Overtime: 1965-2018

IV. ECOLOGICAL AND PHYSICAL FEATURES - BIOTA

Firemen's Park is home to a variety of botanical and wildlife species native to the Niagara Region. Most of these can be found in the back area of the park, the area that contains the Bruce Trail. It is interesting to see plant species in forests such as the Bruce Trail because with the rapid growth of urbanization. Therefore, it is important to examine these landscapes when possible. For example, most trees on the streets of cities/suburbs do not compare to species in forested areas. The "ideal tree" for the city is one that must be fast growing, long-lived and symmetrical. Characteristics such as messy fruit, slippery leaves and thorns make some trees unacceptable in places because they inconvenience humans. (Hough, 2004) Whereas in forested areas like the Bruce Trail, we can examine species that may be considered "inconvenient" in other areas.

The wildlife of Niagara Falls, the city where Firemen's Park is located contains species that are common to most Canadians, and some species that may be new for some people as well. Common animals that can be seen in Niagara Falls and Firemen's Park include rabbits, foxes, squirrels and racoons. The Niagara Escarpment provides habitat for many beautiful bird species. These include robins, cardinals, blue jays and woodpeckers. (Higgs, 2019) Something interesting about Niagara's wildlife is that urbanization has caused many species to become extinct. For example, black bears and mountain lions called Niagara home before becoming eradicated. (Higgs, 2019) This shows how drastic humans can impact an ecosystem. The ecosystem was likely much different when these predators around. This fact may also be the reason there are so many smaller mammals in this area, as their predators became eradicated.

Animal species native to Firemen's Park is similar to that of other animals on the Bruce Trail. However, a lot of species surrounding Firemen's Park may not be as diverse as other parts of the Bruce Trail because of human influence. Firstly, the roads and highways around Firemen's Park may have caused some species that are native to the Bruce Trail to show up less and less. Noise pollution, gas emissions, and the building of roads do not provide an ideal habitat for many species. The suburb of Celeguiro Estates is also located in close proximity to Firemen's Park, which took away acres of forested area for botanical and wildlife species. These examples in relation to Firemen's Park show on a small level how humans can affect their ecosystems. However, these types of influence on the land happens worldwide, making it a large-scale problem. Human domination of landscapes is something that should be limited, as it could lead to events such as extinction. In fact, recent calculations suggest that rates of species extinction are now 100 to 1000 times greater than before humanity's dominance of Earth. (Marzluff, 2008, pg.10)

As a result of urbanization and human influence, more species are becoming extinct. Firemen's Park is an encouraging landscape because like many other locations on the Bruce Trail, it tries to preserve its wildlife. Fishing from the pond is encouraged however they recommend not removing fish from their habitat as it will affect its surrounding ecosystem. As mentioned before, removing species can cause drastic changes to ecosystems. Many species may rely on this fish to eat and therefore survive, or perhaps this fish feeds on organisms that would be detrimental to its environment in large quantities.

IV. ECOLOGICAL AND PHYSICAL FEATURES - GEOMORPHOLOGY

Firemen's Park is a prime example of the Niagara Escarpment, however there is much more to it than meets the eye. Typically, when thinking about the Niagara Escarpment one thinks of many hills and valleys in the landscape. Firemen's Park is a prime example of a rich hilly landscape. In fact, as mentioned on the first page the lowest point of the property is around 152m and the highest point is about 219m. This shows the drastic variation in elevation in this landscape. This is not surprising as many landscapes along the Bruce Trail have massive increases and decreased in elevation. This is an aspect of the land that makes the Trail so appealing and beautiful.

As mentioned before, the geomorphology of Firemen's Park is more than meets the eye. Being that the Niagara Escarpment is known for many hilly areas, most people do not know that Firemen's Park was actually a former landfill. This can be seen in older air photos as the area where Firemen's Park is located looks dug up. For example, Figure 2.0 shows the area in 1965, the dug-up landfill is circled. This is because the location is where some garbage would have been stored for the city of Niagara Falls in the 1960s. For a city to determine adequate locations to build they must look to the soil properties. This may include impacts by emission, motor traffic, or abandoned polluted sites. (Marzluff, 2008)

Some human-induced changes on the landscapes include the addition of amenities for the park. For example: canapes, a children's park, dog park and a hall. An interesting aspect of the amenities added to the landscape is that there are not many buildings or parks where the landfill used to be. They are placed more strategically around where the land is flatter. This is because it is not a great idea to build on landfills as it is not sustainable. Activities are not sustainable when they cause cumulative degradation of the environment. (Brown, 2019) Therefore, building on a former landfill site is not sustainable because of the problems that could occur due to things like odor and subsidence of land.

Figure 2.0. 1965. Courtesy of Brock Air Photos (Citation in Bibliography)

IV. ECOLOGICAL AND PHYSICAL FEATURES - HYDROGEOLOGY

In regard to the hydrogeological features of Firemen's Park, the only real aspect is the pond in the back (North Side) of the park. Something interesting to note is that the map feature on Niagara Navigator shows the area of Firemen's Park over the years. If you go to an aerial view in 1934 you can see that the pond is not visible. (Figure 3.0) This signifies that the pond located in Firemen's Park is most likely the result of a human induced change in hydrogeology. As mentioned previously the site was a former landfill. Therefore, perhaps this pond was constructed as an area of runoff for the landfill.

Urbanization influences the water cycle by changing the microclimate and precipitation in cities, which affects their ecosystems. (Alberti, 2008) The affect urbanization and globalization has on hydrogeology is undeniable. The addition of roads, buildings and emissions can cause problems in the water cycle. For example, the global climate caused by pollution and green house gas emissions can cause rising water levels in oceans, lakes, ponds, etc. The exponentially growing global ecological footprint can be a threat to streams in ecosystems. In fact, over 130,000 km of streams and rivers in the United States are impaired by urbanization. (Marzluff, 2008, pg. 207) While this is an American stat, this reality is happening all over the world. The streams that flow into the pond at Firemen's Park flow directly underneath General Brock Parkway. This shows how streams that flow into the pond at Firemen's Park can be contaminated by car emissions.

Firemen's Park encourages visitors to fish at their pond for recreation but ask to not remove the fish from their natural habitat once caught. They also however do not encourage swimming in this pond This is for a variety of reasons. As mentioned in the Biota section, removing fish from their natural habitat can cause drastic effects to that ecosystem. There would also be no point in using these fish to eat, as the species that live in the pond are not as desirable as others in Southern Ontario. Keeping fish and swimming would also not be encouraged because of the pollutants in the pond. Being a former landfill site and close to a main highway, the pond likely includes pollutants that humans would like to steer clear of.


Figure 3.0. 1934. Courtesy of Niagara Navigator (Citation in Bibliography)

IV. ECOLOGICAL AND PHYSICAL FEATURES - CLIMATE / MICROCLIMATE

When examining the microclimate of Firemen's Park or even any microclimate around the world there are many human induced changes on the landscape. These changes may not directly affect an entire climate on their own, but these individual human modifications on the landscape add up and can contribute to overall climate. For example, two human induced changes at Firemen's Park include the formal landfill site and the addition of suburban homes and main roads. These changes on their own do not drastically effect climate, however if you think of how many individual places are making these changes it can contribute to a global ecological footprint. Therefore, to fully understand climates on a greater scale it is important to look to microclimates such as Firemen's Park and its ecosystem.

The first human induced change regarding Firemen's Park is the fact that it is a former landfill site. Landfills are problematic for the environment because as organic matter decomposes it releases methane gas. (Newton, 2018) Methane is a greenhouse gas, meaning it builds up in the ozone layer and contributes to global warming. It is possible that perhaps Firemen's Park and its ecosystem can feel the long term affects of global warming in the future, with this landfill as a contributor. Often times landfill sites area accompanied by an unpleasant odor as the waste decompresses. However, being at Firemen's Park there is no odor to speak of. This is most likely due to the fact that it has been about fifty years since the landfill was stopped. As shown in the 1968 photo in Figure 1.0, the landfill is not as prominent compared to the 1965 photo. Therefore, it can be inferred that the landfill was stopped around 1970, a contributing factor as to why there is no odor at Firemen's Park today.

Firemen's Park being a former landfill can shed light on the reasons as to why suburbs were built farther away from the site, and the park was set up where it is. Building houses on a former landfill was obviously not ideal due to potentially odor, pollutants and subsidence of the land. This is an example of how humans alter their landscape and are left with these types of complications. The city of Niagara Falls is placed in a situation where they have to be mindful of where they can build houses for people to live, all because of past human modifications to the landscape.

With all of that being said, there are benefits to having a space like Firemen's Park. With the increase in urbanization, it is important for landscapes to have areas open and green areas such as forests. Bigger cities such as Toronto develop urban heat islands because of the lack of unaltered spaces. An urban heat island occurs when heat from the sun is unable to be absorbed into the ground and is therefore absorbed by buildings. (Hough, 2004) This results in an increased temperature in bigger cities with many buildings and less open space. With the ever-expanding population and globalization, it is becoming increasingly important that cities have these open areas of vegetation, to avoid microclimate problems such as urban heat islands.

Over the Years


V. HISTORICAL FEATURES

  • Archaeological influences: Dating back to approximately 12,000 to 23,000 years ago when the continents of Asia and North America were connected, marks the arrival of Canada's first Aboriginals. (The Canada Guide, 2019) The Haudenosaunee people are Canada's largest native community and occupied around the St. Lawrence river and Great Lakes before the arrival of Europeans. (The Canada Guide, 2019) Therefore, it is safe to say that the Haudenosaunee people likely lived in close proximity to Firemen's Park in Niagara Falls. Indigenous peoples are known for being great hunters and builders of shelter. Aboriginals are the first evidence we have of humans manipulating their landscape to meet their needs and survive. Hunting was vital for food and survival, building was essential for shelter and survival.

  • Land use history: It was not until around 1604 until Niagara Falls had been discovered by Europeans courtesy of Samuel de Champlain. Although he has never seen the falls himself, he was able to write about it and publish a map thanks to reports by Indigenous peoples. (Berketa, 2012) It was around this time Europeans settled into Canada and decimated Aboriginal populations, largely due to disease. (The Canada Guide, 2019) When this happened Europeans began to create a landscape similar to their homeland. They altered landscape in a slightly different way than Aboriginals as places like government buildings, shops and later factories were all introduced. Indigenous peoples and European settlers both likely had a hand in shaping Niagara Falls and the Firemen's Park area to what it is today. Firemen's Park was not used as a recreational park until 1963 (SCVFA, 2019). As mentioned previously, the landscape was a landfill prior to being taken over by the Stamford Center Volunteer Firemen's Association. I will provide a more in-depth view of the ownership of the land in the land tenure section. Prior to the landscape being run by the SCVFA, the land contained little to no recreation. As time has passed from 1963 until present day, more and more residential areas have been added. Recently this is shown as the expensive neighbourhood known as Calaguiro Estates located East of the park.

VI. CULTURAL FEATURES

Education / Interpretation:

To my knowledge there are not many interpretive resources available that deal with this local landscape. However, they do have opportunities to learn and connect with the community. Firemen's Park is home to venues such as their hall and Stargazing events held in the park. (SCVFA, 2019) The hall can be used for educational purposes as it can be used for group seminars or meetings. The Stargazing events in the park are good for people interested in astronomy, as the park hosts the event for people to go and check out the stars with other astronomers. This educational opportunity is open to everyone and ran by complete volunteers.

Architectural Heritage:

The architectural heritage at is practically non-existent at Firemen's Park. The park does not have any heritage buildings or features being protected. This is most likely due to the fact that this is a former landfill site, so they are likely focused on making the landscape more appealing and moving away from stereotypes of a landfill. There is nothing wrong in doing this, as improving a landscape sustainably is always a good idea. While heritage is non-existent before Firemen's Park, the landscape takes pride in their ability to maintain this land for just over 50 years. There very well may be heritage aspects added onto Firemen's Park in the future, and students may look back to today when analyzing the landscape. However, in present day there are no heritage features to speak of.

Recreational Uses:

Vibrant and authentic places with lively cultural and entertainment options are magnets that attract and retain certain people. (Baeker & Hanna, 2009) Firemen's Park being a community-oriented landscape has many recreational uses that attract people during their free time. The recreational uses can be distinguished into two variations: events controlled by the park and features open to the public. For events controlled by the park, these events include: the Annual Carnival, Thursday Blues Concerts, Stargazing events and a Hall available for booking. (SCVFA, 2019) These events would be on scheduled days and are ran by the volunteers of Firemen's Park. The park runs these events for the entertainment of the community. Their aim is to also raise money not only to maintain the park and run the events but also to give back to the community. The park gives whatever money they raise that is left over from the events to charity organizations in Niagara. (SCVFA, 2019) Firemen's Park also has recreational features that are open to the public. For example, their landscape contains a children's park, dog park, and pond where fishing is encouraged. It is also home to a portion of the Bruce Trail, which is a landscape many people visit each year.

Annual Carnival



Full Citation in Bibliography
 


 


 


 

VII. LAND TENURE

Ownership, jurisdiction, access, and management

Firemen's Park is wholly owned and maintained by the Stamford Center Volunteer Firemen's Association (SCVFA) and is available year-round for use by the community. (SCVFA, 2019) The Firemen's Association's sole ownership of the landscape is the reason the landscape has not undergone any major changes over the years. While aspects such as the dog park and hall have been added in recent years, the landscape has not undergone a major change. This differs from surrounding land as suburban homes have been added while the park has stayed mostly the same. The SCVFA has done this likely to stay true to their roots of being a community-based recreational landscape. There are likely many things they can do with this land to make money, but they find more value in giving back to the community.

VIII. CONNECTIVITY AND CONTEXT

The connectivity of Firemen's Park can be viewed in a variety of ways. Firstly, Firemen's Park is connected to all of Ontario due to its linkage with the Bruce Trail. The Bruce Trail extends from Northern Ontario all the way to Southern Ontario where Firemen's Park is located. This multi-kilometer trail connects Firemen's Park with many other landscapes that are located on the Bruce Trail. The streams that stem from the pond in Firemen's Park also lead to a major highway. In fact, these streams lie right underneath the General Brock Parkway as shown in Map 1. The streets named Dorchester Road and Mountain Road can also be seen on this map. Firemen's Park is located on the corner of these two main streets. This is significant because both Dorchester and Mountain Road are long streets that run North/South and East/West respectively. These long roads connect Firemen's Park to the rest of Niagara Falls.

Landscapes can also be described as complex networks of human and natural agents connected by biological, geographical and socioeconomic processes. (Alberti, 2008, pg. 101) The landscape of Firemen's Park is connected by human interaction and natural agents of the landscape. For example, being located on the Bruce Trail is a natural geographic agent. While human interaction with the landscape can be seen through socioeconomic processes. For example, the surrounding suburban neighbourhoods near Firemen's Park is a human induced interaction on the landscape. The former landfill site is also a human induced interaction showing that while natural agents of the landscape are important, human induced changes can alter the landscapes present and future characteristics.

Video

For those of you wondering about the future of this landscape, this video touches on that. Note this was made before the hall was completed

Video

IX. CONTACT INFORMATION

The following is contact information courtesy of the official Stamford Center Volunteer Firemen's Association website: http://scvfa.ca/

Mailing Address: 2275 Dorchester Road, Niagara Falls, Ontario L2E 6S4

Email: scvfa@scvfa.ca

Hall/Park Rental: parkbookings@scvfa.ca (preferred) or Phone: 905-357-3632

X. LITERATURE CITED

Abstract Literature Cited

Firemen's Park - Niagara Falls Park Information - City of Niagara Falls. (n.d.). Retrieved from

https://niagarafalls.ca/city-hall/recreation/parks/441-firemens-park.pd

Langley, A. (2019, August 15). Summer Daze BBQ Classic returning to Firemen's Park. Retrieved from https://www.stcatharinesstandard.ca/whatson-story/9551338-summer-daze-bbq-classic-returning-to-firemen-s-park/

Stamford Center Volunteer Firemen's Association. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://scvfa.ca/

Landscape Report Literature Cited

Alberti, M. (2008). Advances in urban ecology. [electronic resource] : integrating humans and ecological processes in urban ecosystems. Springer. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.proxy.library.brocku.ca/login.aspx?direct=true&db=cat00778a&AN=bu.b2099887&site=eds-live&scope=site

Baeker, G. & Hanna, J. (February 2009). Culture, Authenticity, Place. Retrieved from Course Readings Tab on Sakai: GEOG 2P94

Berketa, R. (2012, February 20). Historical Accounts: The History of Niagara Falls. Retrieved from http://www.niagarafrontier.com/accounts.html

Brown, D. (2019, September 12) – GEOG 2P94 Lecture 2

Higgs, A. (2019, March 18). The Amazing Wildlife of Niagara Falls. Retrieved from: https://grownuptravelguide.com/amazing-wildlife-niagara-falls

Hough, M. (2004). Cities and Natural Process (Vol. 2nd ed). London: Routledge. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.proxy.library.brocku.ca/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=114942&site=eds-live&scope=site

Marzluff, J. M. (2008). Urban ecology. [electronic resource]: an international perspective on the interaction between humans and nature. Retrieved from http://search.ebscohost.com.proxy.library.brocku.ca/login.aspx?direct=true&db=cat00778a&AN=bu.b2099813&site=eds-live&scope=site

Newton, J. (2019, March 2). The Effects of Landfills on the Environment. Retrieved from https://sciencing.com/effects-landfills-environment-8662463.html.

Stamford Centre Volunteer Firemen's Association. (2019) Retrieved from http://scvfa.ca/

The Canada Guide. (2019) The Aboriginal Peoples of Canada. Retrieved from https://thecanadaguide.com/basics/aboriginals/

Photos Literature Cited

Firemen's Park Carnival. Retrieved from: https://fallingforniagara.com/events/niagara-falls-annual-carnival-firemens-park/

Google Maps. Retrieved from https://maps.google.com (Accessed 22/10/2019)

Niagara Air Photo Digital Images, 1965 & 1968 Series. [19341-51] & [20445-238]. Niagara Falls, ON: Brock University Maps, Data & GIS, 2016. (Accessed 22/10/2019).

Niagara Navigator. 1934, 2000, 2002, 2018 Map of Niagara Falls. Retrieved from https://maps.niagararegion.ca/Navigator/ (Accessed 22/10/2019)



About the Author

This Local Landscape Report was prepared by Anthony Rosati for the Brock University course TOUR 2P94: Human Dominated Ecosystems on November 7th, 2019.

All copyrights for cited material rest with the original copyright owners.


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