Small or large, urban parks are even more a part of our daily lives in the summer. But what makes up their soul? Which one occupies a special place in our hearts and our routine? For this series, The duty goes through some of them, sometimes accompanied by readers who wanted to share their story. Today: Jeanne-Mance Park in Montreal.
There are places that stand out for their beauty or their history. And others that are shaped by the way they are used. For “at least” a hundred years, a tight-knit community has been playing softball at Jeanne-Mance Park, at the foot of Mount Royal. To the point where many of its members cannot imagine playing anywhere else in Montreal. The park has thus become inseparable from softball games. softball pickup which have been played there for decades. In the same way that it has become unthinkable to have these matches exist outside of Jeanne-Mance Park.
“We have this feeling that this space is ours [le terrain de balle molle]because of our prolonged use over time and also because we have fought many times [pour préserver le lieu] “, explains François Lamoureux, who has been playing this sport at Jeanne-Mance Park since 2011.
Already in the 1920s, aerial photographs show the presence of baseball fields in the park. And in the novel Joshua Then and Now by Mordecai Richler, published in 1980, the main character, when chased by the police, takes refuge in Fletcher’s Field (which will become Jeanne-Mance Park), where a “ pickup softball game “.
“This is the only explicit testimony there is of pickup [à cette époque dans le parc Jeanne-Mance] “, emphasizes François, 33, a doctoral student in history. Proof, however, that improvised softball games are part of the historical use of the park, he adds.
Jeanne-Mance Park is apparently the only place in Montreal where these types of games are played, which take place like the hockey games played on outdoor rinks in winter. Players spontaneously show up on site and form temporary teams for a game or two.
A mixture of cultures
David Smith, for his part, began playing in the mid-1980s. “It’s always been a place where all cultures, all professions and all lifestyles have come together,” says the graying-haired 76-year-old, who hung up his glove last year. “They won’t let me play anymore!”
Throughout history, the French-speaking and English-speaking communities have rubbed shoulders around this marble planted in the heart of Montreal. “About 25 years ago, we started to have a lot of Latinos who joined us. That raised the level of play a lot.”
The caliber had actually become so strong that it created a barrier to the integration of new players, intimidated by what was unfolding before their eyes. In 2005, to facilitate the arrival of recruits, players decided to create a parallel organized league, also located in Jeanne-Mance Park, with fixed teams and a regular schedule. A sort of springboard that allowed many players to subsequently integrate the legendary games of softball pickup.
League games, some of which are reserved exclusively for women, are played on weekday evenings. While impromptu games get the park buzzing starting at 1 p.m. on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays. The Jeanne-Mance Park softball community now numbers some 300 enthusiasts, about 50 of whom show up at the park three or four times a week — to take to the field or commentate on the games from the stands.
That’s the case for Danielle Houlden, a 32-year-old teacher who joined the league in 2011, when she arrived in Montreal from Ontario. “I’ve met so many different people,” she says gratefully. “It’s very special what we have here. I don’t think I’d still be living in Montreal if I hadn’t found this park.” Even though the five-month-pregnant mother-to-be’s French and Spanish are far from perfect, they’ve never been a barrier to building relationships on the field or in the stands, she says. “We always find a way to understand each other.”
A community
“It’s the best after-work activity,” adds Patrick Moore, a 39-year-old software engineer who became league commissioner two years ago alongside François. “It’s like a happy hour, but with exercise!”
Also originally from Ontario, Patrick began frequenting Jeanne-Mance Park in 2009, after a man he met in South Korea told him not only about the softball games, but also about the community that had formed at the foot of Mount Royal. Because after the last ball is thrown, discussions sometimes stretch over a barbecue or a sancochoforging friendships and creating couples.
There are countless times when the community has stepped up to help one of its own. Like when David was hit by a car and the players passed the hat so his daughter could take time off to help around the house. Or when Bubba became seriously ill and softball tournaments — “Bubbapalooza” — were held to raise money for cancer research. “When someone needs help, we come together,” Patrick says proudly. “We’re a community that looks out for each other.”
Some friction
Despite this close connection to the park, relations with the City of Montreal are sometimes complex. Unlike the park’s tennis and soccer fields, the softball field is not lit at night, which reduces the number of games that can be played. And the field is used by dog owners, which causes friction, particularly because of the holes that dogs like to dig.
But above all, despite the protests, the Plante administration decided in 2018 to close the legendary softball field located near Mont-Royal Avenue, where softball games had been played for decades. pickupThe lack of fencing made the location dangerous, the City argued. The second field, located closer to Rue Marie-Anne, remained in use and now hosts games of pickup in addition to league matches.
“There was a kind of essence and soul in the other space that was lost,” laments François. To the point where several players, outraged and saddened, refused for a while to play on the field near Marie-Anne Street. “That’s why we are very protective of our space today. We understood that we can’t take anything for granted.”
In the eyes of many, this strong link – visceral, even – between Jeanne-Mance Park and the games of softball actually two parts of the same whole. “If the parts disappeared from the park, I don’t think they would survive anywhere else,” François sums up.