2008-11-05 P & R Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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8 Rogue Congregating and Socialization Points Rogue congregating and socialization points typically develop in predictable yet unconventional settings where the socialization needs of a particular group are mimicked or supported and these settings are preferred over their more conventional alternatives. This generally occurs with teenagers in search of their own space. I have also seen this develop with disenfranchised adults, such as males with drinking problems, who often choose to meet outside their residence for the purpose of getting drunk. Teenage Oriented Settings It has been my experience that rogue congregating and socialization points for teenagers routinely develop in readily accessed/high traffic locations that tend to mimic conventional social settings and/or support colonization by teenagers. These typically include after hours play ground equipment, groupings of tables, and impromptu seating areas such as the u-shaped, armour stone drainage culvert featured in the photo. In the armour stone example, the sofa-like arrangement of the stones became such a popular hang out for kids that one nearby resident attempted to address the associated loitering, noise and disorderly activities by erecting a 6 foot privacy fence inside the 4 foot chain link fence that already sat on her property. When this didn't help, the resident called her city Councilor who arranged for Police and transportation and works personnel to meet on site. This resulted in a decision to preclude access to the inner edge of the armour stone by moving the fence that protected the culvert by a distance of 3 feet. Had the potential for rogue congregating and socialization behaviour been considered at the time of development, this problem could have been eliminated. Recognition of this problem would have been much more likely if considered from a behavioural based perspective as it is extremely doubtful that CPTED would have identified what turned out to be the critical need for such a relatively subtle design change. Adult Oriented Settings While much less common, it has been my experience that adult oriented, rogue congregating and socialization points typically develop in poorly observed, largely vacant/little used areas close to beer or liquor stores. With the benefit of this knowledge and a behavioural based perspective, I was able to locate a rogue congregation and socialization point that was critical to the resolution of a stubborn problem, the source of which had failed to be reveal itself during an earlier CPTED audit. The problem involved drunks loitering at a well designed plaza. It defied an obvious CPTED solution as the source of the drunks was unknown and there was a lack of CPTED factors in need of correction on the property itself. The solution was found by investigating an adjacent property located at the rear of the plaza where I recognized the potential for a rogue congregating and socialization point.