Submitted by histrionichippo t3_z2r1w2 in newjersey
I am constantly puzzled at the difference in availability of public spaces during the summer and winter months. There is a greater need for recreation during the winter months due to seasonal depression and such. Simple indoor gym equipment and non-commercial walking spaces would make so much of a difference.
It is dark and depressing and quiet as death outside. It is perfectly acceptable to want well developed robust community center type places
Yeah why don't towns already lacking space for development in our dense area just magic up some property and drop a cool couple mil on indoor rec centers from their already tight budgets and increase the tax burden on us more. /s
There are some community centers out there that exist and make sense. There are also many good standing malls. Every town does not need their own. There are PLENTY of indoor recreational activities to do across almost the entire state. This is a silly post IMO.
This is the dumbest rationale ever.
Why is that the dumbest rationale ever? You offered zero rationale so your point is unclear.
Does your scarf come with sunlight? Mine didn't. The sun is down by the time most of us get out work.
Land is expensive.
Then go out in the morning or on weekends. Or just cry about the unfairness of the world.
Quality rationale. Your logic is so disarming, I whole heartedly agree with you. Your unimpeachable vision is truly the stuff of legend.
I hope my sarcam is as potent as the stench of your shitty discourse and your "rationale."
Nobody hear is crying about unfairness. I do like to brainstorm ideas that could improve the quality of life for the average person. And then there is you, the foolish loser who thinks society cannot be improved.
It can be improved by putting on a jacket and taking a walk outside. A little mental clarity from the fresh air might have helped you come up with this trite dogshit in half the time.
Does the coat come with sidewalks and street lights? Because my neighborhood has neither.
You have all the answers, so I breathlessly await your inevitable reply because we both know, there's no way a visionary like you won't have a brilliant answer.
Why bother with more answers when all you'll do is find more excuses for why you can't do the simplest things. Hell of a way to go through life, but you do you.
We have plenty of parks open. Go sledding
Wear gloves and enjoy the outdoors. Just don't stick your tongue on the jungle gym poles.
Oh, no.... DO! Then we won't hear from him for a while
I actually did that once to the basketball pole behind my house, I thought it was BS like Flick and much to my surprise it stuck, luckily my friend was there and my house was close so I had him get a cup of hot water and dump it on my tongue, shit was sore for days and I remember i had a date with a girl in school that night and was worried about making out with her haha, it worked out ok
It's called a Mall. Try American Dream or the Garden State Plaza.
this is the correct answer
Haha I was going to say, this is New Jersey, and that's what malls are for.
This. New Jersey is rich in malls. Malls are commercial spaces, but they are also destinations where people go to just walk.
Many malls in South Jersey have closed, are struggling or are being converted to other uses. So we are not as "rich with malls"
Maybe when one of the hundreds of new warehouses go out of business it could be converted to useful space.
*Prononced “da mawl”
They are absolutely disgusting and are no place for community engagement.
Have you been to the YMCA? That's basically what that is.
Yeah but with a pretty big price tag. It’s more expensive than other gyms in my area.
And it has a bunch more to do and programs than other gyms in your area, basically all the stuff you're looking for.
Ok cool. I will look into it.
You can still enjoy a park in the winter? We get snow but we're not Maine. Put on a coat lol
It’s not Antarctica? I don’t understand this question. Do you want to like- walk around a park? Why can’t you do that in the winter?
Maybe park is a wrong word but public engagement spaces?
What is a "public engagement space" and how does it differ from a park?
You could go to a museum or a library if you need some place to get out.
Your better off outside to combat seasonal depression
Buildings of a scale you're talking about cost $$$$$$ to build, maintain, and staff
New York has public indoor space with trees and tables and coffee vendors. Very nice.
Because of cost, staffing, maintenance, and liability...
Every indoor park I have ever been to, which is at least 6, in other states, has always been a private business that we had to pay by the hour to use.
It could be a business opportunity for some to develop, but in NJ where it's not always terribly cold or snowy, you don't really have a captive customer base...
Isn’t that what a mall is for? (And NJ has plenty of those…)
It's a matter of dressing properly--or take up skiing, skating, etc...
Put on a scarf.
It's cheaper to buy gloves and a pair of longjohns for the <3 months you're cold. Go outside.
Bruh, it's called a jacket.
I agree and think this would be a huge community asset. One of my Powerball win dreams is to buy and convert dead big box store space into indoor community centers with things like rock climbing, skate parks, local band venues, places for club meetings, coffee shops, crafting workshops. . . There would need to be a fee for use but if it could be kept low, I think locations like this would help strengthen communities. Anyone who likes this idea is welcome to use itcand spread it! I'm tired of all the vacant, unused buildings around.
100%. So many dead big-box stores that could make good public spaces.
I would love something like this or just more events/activities in winter. It gets so incredibly boring between November and March or even April really and I hate the cold. Yeah I have the right winter gear to go on a hike or something but I really don't enjoy being outside when it's under 50 degrees and the winter landscape is pretty bleak and not very scenic at least in my opinion. It would be cool if they still had events like they do in the summer and fall.. like beer or food truck festivals, etc and just moved them inside somehow, but everything really shuts down starting around now and there's nothing going on again for 5 months.
NJ doesn't even get that cold during winter other than a few random short stretches. Like it's currently 55 degrees out where I'm at.
Exactly, it’s gorgeous outside today, I’m taking my kids to the playground
November isn't winter. We still have like another month until winter begins. Pretty sure 55 degree days are rare in January. Though I agree it doesn't get that cold here for that long.
It's actually extremely common for January in NJ to have temperatures in the 50s. I've lived here my whole life and it's been this regular occurrence I've observed for decades for people in this state to be like "It's in the 50s in January?! This weather is caaaaaa-razy!" despite this not being uncommon at all. Pick a year and look up daily temperatures for NJ in January and you won't have a hard time finding 50s.
People also don't seem to realize that in terms of world geography, NJ is actually relatively far south for those of us with European ancestry, like on the level of Spain, Southern Italy, etc., and get more direct sunlight than where many of our ancestors came from. This is important as SAD is largely associated with UV light exposure.
In general, the point isn't that we don't have cold stretches of days where maybe indoor facilities would be useful, but our winters are so short and speckled with stretches of warmer, sunnier weather, that that's a lot of wasted money and space most of the year.
Judging from your user name, you are probably used to colder winters than some other counties, so that might be a fair point for those counties!
When we were kids we would play outside rain snow or shine and it was a blessing 💕💕
When I was a kid you could ice skate in Haddonfield.
Another comment for anyone around Holmdel. Bell Works has a great indoor open space where people can walk or sit and kiss and dogs can run around.
I hope you realized how dumb this post was.
Lol so the 100 indoor gyms in our area aren’t enough , we also don’t get that crazy of a winter … coats were invented a pretty long time ago.
No I never been to a gym that isn’t insanely packed with people, Nj does need more gyms
I’d imagine your going to planet fitness or a franchise gym , small local gyms honestly aren’t as packed also it helps no to go at peak hours , which google can tell you traffic hours
There are so many Planet Fitness gyms they aren't that packed outside of the first two weeks in January.
During peak hours specifically
I go to a small local gym, ever since they got a new owner he has way too many people for how small it is and it’s ridiculous. I work a 9-5 impossible for me not to go at peak hours
Sucks yea hard to avoid it , maybe look into grabbing a bike for the house or a treadmill and some weights
My apartment has a little gym inside I go to time to time but weights only go up to only 50lb free weight in 10 lb increments, there’s no bench, only a cable machine and no other workout machine. So very limited. I can do cardio outside if I want but I really don’t do it much because i used to run track and be skinny I’m all about gaining muscle now
Walk outside
Wtf. Yea lets dump money and environmental impact into this, in a state already choked by sprawl. Just get yourself a treadmill and a fake Christmas tree or something.
One: Where exactly would they put them?
Two: What's wrong with wearing winter clothing and just going outside? The parks don't close in winter.
Three: We have these already. Theyre called "malls."
If you're paying for it then let's do it
Because it’s not Minnesota.
Are your taxes not high enough?
Get a good wind breaker or winter coat, a few pairs of long John's, and a ski mask or two.
Our winters get cold but there's entire civilization's that existed in far colder temperatures, if you wanna do outside stuff its really just a matter if getting your layers right
And maybe bringing a thermos of hot chocolate.
I've done hikes and bike rides in <30 degree weather. Its not what we're used too but humans are very adaptable.
And there's always ice skating, there's a number of affordable public rinks.
And standard warning that if you aren't KEENLY familiar with lake ice, don't fuck around in it, and even if you are anything under 5" is taking a risk.
I'm not aware of too many indoor parks that are state-owned.
There are municipal facilities that have indoor activities in a lot of towns.
Then there are plenty of private for-profits/nonprofit facilities like Liberty science center or idiotic American dream which we all paid for billions of subsidence.
Our winters are pretty mild in comparison to upstate New York…just bundle up and enjoy the outdoors!
Get a pair of ski pants and hike a local State Park!
How about that new American Dream mall? It has indoor skiing and pool and could definitely use the business.
I said non-commercial places in my original post. I find malls to be soul-sucking with endless lines of clothing stores and useless stuff I have absolutely no interest in. Where is a space for community engagement in winter. Ping pong tables, sports equipment, a mini library, board games etc . The point being that recreational budgets are spent disproportionately for concerts and stuff in the summer months. Why are the winter months completely neglected. I don't want to walk outside in the dark after work. It is bleak and depressing.
Fair enough, I don’t know what town or city you’re in but the one I grew up in and the one I live in now have community centers that have most of those things plus some more. They usually require you to be a resident for a lower price or higher for non-residents. Or the YMCA.. and if the price is too much they offer financial assistance to the point where it’s almost nothing (or so I hear).
Cause you can still use outdoor parks easy enough? It's not Canada or even Boston.the snow generally melts down before spring.
It is dark and depressing to walk outside and quiet as death.
Then putting in lights outdoors would be cheaper than a new indoor park.
This is jersey; an indoor park would be like being held captive in a Chick E Cheese by toddlers. I'd rather walk, bike outside and inhale the turnpike fumes
With the price of real estate in NJ, do you really think anyone would approve land for this use?
Yeah because taxpayers will have no issue with that...
We’ve already developed jackets and hats.
It’s not a bad idea in theory . . . but it wouldn’t work in practice. The number of months when it’s cold in this state doesn’t justify the price tag. It can be difficult to find a place to walk in the winter, but you can find solutions if you get creative. If you don’t have a mall nearby, you can even walk laps around a larger grocery store or big-box store.
Which cold weather states do you think do a better job than we do?
Chicago
I mean Chicago is like 10 x the size of our largest city so I would expect that honestly
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Build one on your own... I'm not interested in the price tag
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Make the old K-Mart on 17 South a place like this
This is honestly a great idea. I belong to an athletic club but there should be something free for children and adults the like.
I want to walk my dog but it’s way too cold. Would love an indoor are to walk with my dog and get exercise with getting wind burn .
Its almost 50 today you wuss
They make doggie jackets, and If you're still cold with a heavy coat consider long John's or leggings under your pants.
no such thing as bad weather, just bad gear
Youre 100% right OP, and the chorus of people trying to knock you down is why NJ is so bad at building public goods
We need fairly basic infrastructure improvements, not expensive luxuries like indoor parks.
StriderTB t1_ixhs9lc wrote
Parks aren't closed in the winter, get a scarf and go for a walk.