For the past four years, Parks Foundation Calgary has been working on a first of its kind park in Canada that’s specifically designed to support and engage seniors living with dementia.

Ground was broken on the park on May 29, marking a major milestone towards the completion of the Martin Family Legacy Garden in 2026.

Sheila Taylor, CEO of Parks Foundation Calgary, said that the location of the dementia inclusive park in an underutilized space in the community of Dover next to the Greater Forest Lawn 55+ Society and the Bethany Care Centre made it perfect placed for use.

“It was sort of magical when we came to see this space and we realized how perfect it was. Then, we looked at the community of Dover, and the community of Dover could could benefit from a beautiful park, too, because this is going to support people with dementia but also community members who are looking for a space to go,” Taylor said.

Among the features of the park that will set it apart from other parks in the city, and make it accessible for people living with dementia and their caretakers, include safety, sensory, and supportive elements.

The circular design of pathways make it extremely hard for people to lose their way, with signage and pathway finding on the ground to provide additional support.

“Everything will be colour coded, just so that people can really feel like they know where they’re going in this space,” said Taylor.

Extra seating, handrails, and space for programming will also make it easier for everyone to use the space, she said.

Taylor said the sensory input from smells from the garden would also be important to help individuals with their memories.

“There will be features in the park that are very beautiful and that will inspire memories, but also the senses. So, there will be fragrant gardens throughout the park all together. It comes to create this new prototype in Canada for a park specifically designed for people with dementia,” she said.

Taylor said that she hoped the park would inspire more spaces designed specifically for seniors, and for parks for all ages to more carefully consider the needs of seniors.

“I don’t know why it took so long for this idea to come forward, but what I would say is that the Parks Foundation, we always have an eye for innovation. We’re looking for that idea that has never been done, or that creative take on a project, and that comes to great success,” she said.

Taylor said that while dementia specific parks and spaces had been developed in countries like the Netherlands and Australia, the unique climate conditions of Calgary meant that the way that the new Martin Family Legacy Garden would address the needs of users was different.

More need for senior spaces and dementia inclusive park

Ward 9 Coun. Gian-Carlo Carra, who had been a proponent for the park from the beginning, said that there was a need for the new park and for others to address the growth in the number of seniors in Calgary.

“We know that our seniors population is exploding. People living with dementia will correspondingly explode in size. We have to remember that dementia is not just something that afflicts the individual who’s on that journey, it afflicts their family, their friends, their caretakers,” he said.

“Creating spaces in our city that are inclusive of people with these needs and other needs, has to be job one of city government, and I’m deeply proud that our city government is doing that, and I’m proud that there are so many amazing Calgarians who have stepped up to provide their expertise and their financial support to that.”

He said that turning the empty space in Dover into an inclusive park, was an important redevelopment for the community.

“It’ll make a really important sort of place where our huge population of seniors, a lot of them suffering from cognitive decline and dementia, can have a safe place to be. It’ll also be an important place for the entire city, just off the Deerfoot Trail, can pop in here and enjoy a space that’s designed through research and through, co-design from people with lived experience”

The cost of the park was just over $4 million, with funding provided from the City of Calgary, Alzheimer Calgary, and the Government of Alberta.

Significant donations were made by the Martin family, after which the park is named, and the Richardson family.

Greg Martin said that there was a personal connection to the new park, given that his first company was deeply connected to the Dover community.

“That company was in Foothills Industrial Park right over there, and the magic of Dover, Radcliffe, Forest Lawn and these areas, they were putting up those little 1,200-foot bungalows, and we were making joint cement for the boards. We grew with that, with the growth. The growth in here is what got us going,” Martin said.

“The magic really happened when I joined a Rotary Club Calgary, South Rotary—It’s now Calgary at Stampede Park—and there I met Don Taylor, Glenn Richardson, Bob Brawn, and all the guys that knew how to be true philanthropists. I’ve watched them over the years teach us where we could go, and all we needed to do is maybe get enough money to participate in this game that they’re playing. It’s a great game.”

Ground Cubed designed the park with construction being handled by LandForm.

Construction will occur over the next two summers, with completion of the park set for later in 2026.