Calgary warms up parks with temporary fire pits and free firewood

The cityis putting temporary fire pits andfree wood in several parks around Calgaryto encourage people to socialize safely as cases of the coronavirus continue to spike.

"COVID has been tough on all of us. We're warming up select parks with temporary free-to-use fire pits this winter so you can gather with your family or cohorts safely outside," the city says on its website.

The small, residential-sized fire pits have been set up in community parks across the city.

They're free to use from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. any day of the week. Priority will be given to people who book the pits with a permit; however,that's not required.

Bookable times are 12-3 p.m., 4-6 p.m. and 7-9 p.m.

Free firewood is available at the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary from Thursday through Saturday from noon until 4 p.m.

The city asks that people gather only with others in their bubble, stay two metres apart and respect the limit of 10 people in an outside social gathering.

The fire pits are at the following parks:

• Collingwood Off-leash Park at 1823 John Laurie Blvd. N.W.
• Country Hills Park at 529 Country Hills Dr. N.W.
• Crescent Heights Park at 201 2nd St. N.W.
• Hillhurst - Riley Park at 80012th St. N.W.
• Sunnyside at 625 3rd Ave. N.W.
• Big Marlborough Park at 6021 Madigan Dr. N.E.
• Taradale - Manmeet Singh Bhullar Park at 730664th Ave. N.E.
• Bridgeland Plaza at 912 General Ave. N.E.
• Spruce Cliff - Cedar Crescent Park at 411 Cedar Cr. S.W.
• Evergreen Park at 1611 Evergreen Dr. S.W.
• Meadowlark Park at 20 MacKay Dr. S.W.
• Copperfield Park at 41 Copperfield Pt. S.E.

There are also several permanent, in-ground fire pits at the larger regional parks around Calgary that are also available from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. any day of the week. Permits or booking are not necessary.

These fire pits are located at:

• Bowness Park at 8900 48th Ave. N.W.
• Shouldice Park at 4900 Monserrat Dr. N.W.
• Prairie Winds Park at 223 Castleridge Blvd. N.E.
• Edworthy Park at 5050 Spruce Dr. S.W.
• North Glenmore Park at 7305 Crowchild Tr. S.W.
• South Glenmore Park at 90th Ave. & 24th St. S.W.
• Sandy Beach at 4500 14A St. S.W.
• Stanley Park at 4011 1A St. S.W.

Park users are also permitted to bring their own portable propane fire pits to city parks any day of the week from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.

These fire pits must be used onlyin manicured areas with short grass or gravel and must be kept at least 10 metres away from playgrounds, benches and other structures.

Personal wood burning fire pits are not allowed.

Always bring water to put out the fire, as there might not be enough snow, the city says.