August 1, 2022 Order Reprints No Comments ✕

As the lines between work and home life become increasingly blurred, and as social, professional, and educational interactions become more virtual, community and municipal parks are taking on a new focus for people to enjoy integrating park time into their daily routines. To accommodate this, communities need to adapt public outdoor spaces to people’s changing needs and new modes of living.

What might these new sorts of facilities and park experiences look like? The answer to this is Upfit, an adaptive outdoor structure system from Landscape Forms. Upfit activates and transforms currently underutilized park space and welcomes visitors to make time spent there a bigger part of their everyday routines. The solution’s modularity, customizability and variety of amenities can create relevant, purpose-built destinations to address the needs of communities' new, modern lifestyles.

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Upfit shelters begin as a simple system of posts and beams, and from there, the possibilities seem virtually endless. A toolkit of roofing, panels, furnishings, charging stations, coat and bike racks, shelves, benches, and planting options tailor the solution to provide unique purpose and integrate the structures seamlessly with the beauty of their surroundings. And because Upfit is both modular and scalable, it can be adapted or expanded as the needs of parks, recreational facilities and their communities continue to evolve.

 

Here are just a few innovative ways you can use Upfit to revitalize park spaces and make them more relevant, useful, and enjoyable:

 

1. Create Outdoor Meet-Up Hubs.

Whether kicking off a cycling group ride, embarking on a trip with the local hiking club, or meeting for an afternoon of birdwatching with the local Audubon Society chapter, inviting meet-up spaces are key elements in increasing a park’s visitor traffic. Upfit can welcome groups of all sizes with customizable options for integrated bench seating, standing, and dining height tables, convenient storage for personal items, and vertical bike racks for a secure and space-efficient place for your ride.

 

2. Welcome Outdoor Work.

As remote work and study are firmly taking hold, employees and students are seizing the opportunity to take their day-to-day activities outside. Upfit can encourage the energizing and creativity-boosting qualities of working in outdoor spaces while also providing the fundamental resources for remote productivity. For example, white boards, integrated power modules offer charging stations for laptops, phones, and tablets. Reliable Wi-Fi connectivity supports web browsing, virtual meetings, and digital coursework. Various seating options welcome focused individual productivity or lively group collaboration. Slatted roofs and louvered or lushly planted wall panels provide privacy and shade, reduce glare on mobile devices, and help visitors connect with the surroundings they came to enjoy.

 

3. Encourage Open-Air Education.

Elementary school outdoor education units, nature-oriented summer camps, and park-sponsored ecological education programs are just a few of the many ways that communities seek to get their youth outside and better in-tune with their natural surroundings. Upfit can help parks become the go-to destinations for safe and inspiring outdoor learning. White board panels support talks and collaborative education. Power for digital displays and audio systems enable modern, interactive presentation. Integrated hooks hang on slatted panels to stow students' backpacks and personal items. Glass and louvered walls aid focus and provide privacy while still enabling supervision from the outside.

 

4. Create Al Fresco Social & Dining Destinations.

In creating the outdoor social and dining spaces people seek out most, comfort, security and accessibility are paramount. Regardless of the season, weather, time of day, or individual needs and preferences, these spaces need to ensure there is always a place for everyone to enjoy being outdoors together. In Upfit structures, power for overhead fans and heating units along with weather-sensing automated roof louvers allow interiors to remain comfortable year-round. Efficient LED lighting welcomes evening events and makes Upfit a secure and inviting gathering place for the lunchtime or after-work crowd. Because of the footprint’s modularity, Upfit can safely and easily accommodate those needing mobility assistance and enables parks to be friendly multi-generational destinations.

 

Emphasizing modularity and customizability, Upfit outdoor structures from Landscape Forms find new ways to make valuable park space more relevant, useful, and enjoyable for the whole community.

Indeed, Upfit’s modularity and customizability make it a unique solution for transforming valuable park space into more relevant, useful and enjoyable destinations for the whole community.

For more information on how Upfit can help you activate underutilized space in your parks, visit www.landscapeforms.com.

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How Upfit Makes Place

How Upfit is Configured