Kinsmen Park

As Saskatoon’s oldest park, Kinsmen Park has been one of the city’s most prominent and well-loved places. From its origins over a century ago, this 31 acre site has been a key gathering place in the city - bringing families together to play, socialize, and connect with nature.  

In the first part of the 1900s the park’s character was shaped by a popular horse racing track. In the 1950’s, a collection of amusement rides was installed in the park, including a miniature train, ferris wheel and carousel. The opening of the Kinsmen Park amusement rides in late May has traditionally signalled the start of summer in Saskatoon.

The park’s identity and its spatial organization became obscured over time through incremental changes. This fragmentation of the park, together with the decline of the amusement rides, made renewal increasingly important. Meanwhile, downtown Saskatoon was becoming less relevant for families, as activities for children were becoming rare.

We responded to these challenges by restoring Kinsmen Park as a great place for families and children establishing a new central core within park. We clarified the site’s spatial organization and hierarchy by introducing a large plaza that functions as the social heart of the site. The geometry of the race track was re-established with a looping track for the new miniature train, built to resemble the freight trains of the Canadian prairies. The loop frames a large open lawn area where people gather to enjoy summer festivals. 

In addition, we introduced a generous new play environment that integrates a diversity of play opportunities, from water tables and ‘forest fountains’ to complex climbers, giant slides and a zipline. Malleable materials like water and sand give children the opportunity to experiment and shape their surroundings. 

The new design of this urban park, with its iconic yellow ferris wheel, re-establishes Kinsmen Park as an important civic place for Saskatoon. Since opening in early August 2015, the public has visited the park well beyond expectations and established a new place for public life in the city centre.