Available online at www.sciencedirect.com ScienceDirect Procedia Engineering 165 (2016) 1402 – 1409 15th International scientific conference “Underground Urbanisation as a Prerequisite for Sustainable Development” Setting objectives and developing planning concepts as part of the process of design of Russian urban recreation areas (the social aspect) Zinaida Ivanova a,*, Marina Afonina a a Moscow State University of Civil Engineering, Yaroslavskoye sh 26, Moscow, 129337, Russia Abstract The co-authors discuss the prospects for the development of urban sports facilities that may occupy both subterranean and overground spaces The co-authors have conducted a sociological poll in several Russian cities and towns to identify the demand for the services provided by urban winter leisure parks, their attendance rate, extent of their convenience as perceived by their customers, the types of rides available, and the needs for any sports accessories The poll findings have identified the need to take account of particular features of design driven by the demand for leisure parks The co-authors believe that innovative design projects may accommodate changing rooms, coffee rooms, sports gear rent rooms, restaurants and cafeterias in the subterranean space, due to the insufficiency of unoccupied urban areas 2016The V Authors A Gerasimova Published Ltd © © 2016 Published by Elsevier by Ltd.Elsevier This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the 15th International scientific conference “Underground (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/) Peer-review under scientific committee of the 15th International scientific conference “Underground Urbanisation as a Urbanisation as aresponsibility Prerequisite of forthe Sustainable Development Prerequisite for Sustainable Development Keywords: aubterranean and overground structures, recreation areas, mountain skiing facilities, winter leisure, urban parks, snow parks, sociological poll, urban residents’ needs Introduction Promotion of physical culture and sports contemplates the ongoing diversification of sports, the generation of awareness about new kinds of sports, and the rise in the popularity of traditional and innovative sports Urban and * Corresponding author E-mail address: ivanovazi@mail.ru 1877-7058 © 2016 The Authors Published by Elsevier Ltd This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/) Peer-review under responsibility of the scientific committee of the 15th International scientific conference “Underground Urbanisation as a Prerequisite for Sustainable Development doi:10.1016/j.proeng.2016.11.871 Zinaida Ivanova and Marina Afonina / Procedia Engineering 165 (2016) 1402 – 1409 suburban snow parks have gained in the popularity in the recent dozens of years A snow park is an independent facility composed of natural and artificial elements; it has sports and leisure areas; it comprises engineering structures and elements of the natural environment, and it may be located in urban and rural areas The natural environment, the intended use, and the operating conditions of snow parks pre-determine their architectural and planning concepts The engineering facilities of snow parks represent special-purpose structures (permanent and temporary), placed on the inclined terrain, whether natural or manmade; they need utility networks and transport infrastructure The first snow park dates back to early 90ies of the 20ieth century; it was developed in the most prestigious winter resort in the USA, located in Vail, Colorado, and it has pistes, snow board areas, tubing areas, half pipes, numerous trampolines, and other structures Park City, located close to Salt Lake City, USA, is the largest snow park of the world: it is a huge facility; its area is equal to 3,300 acres (1,340 hectares); it has over one hundred pistes for skiers having different levels of skills Russia has also accumulated particular experience in designing winter parks as part of complex skiing centers Moscow, Moscow Region, St.Petersburg, Samara, Gorokhovets, Izhevsk, Novosibirsk and other cities have their snow parks Their number and diversity keeps growing We can offer many examples of architectural, structural, and marketing concepts The Sviyazh Hills skiing center (built as part of Kazan urban sports and leisure center) has a new snow park It has a residential housing facility, cafes, restaurants, and offers a wide selection of tours Now Moscow uses its continuous ropeway as a winter recreation facility, and in summer, this ropeway serves as part of wakeboarding and water skiing facilities Design and development of major urban sports and leisure centers require extensive pre-prepared areas, which are scarce in the cities [1] Therefore, there is a pressing need for the development of next generation sports facilities and for the design of elite sports facilities in the urban format to become part of urban landmarks Artificial slopes, capable of competing with natural mountains, are available in the territory of the Exhibition of Economic Achievements (VDNkH), in front of the main building of the Moscow State University, and next to the rowing canal Gorky park may serve as the example of a major urban snowboarding center, as back in 2011 – 2015, it accommodated the world’s biggest artificial slope and several jibbing facilities, designated for beginners, amateurs, and professionals Unfortunately, this popular project is on hold due to the policy of sanctions An artificial slope, built in Sokolniki park and known as The Gorka, is the major Russian temporary artificial snow tubing facility Designers and structural engineers have to identify the urban areas, suitable for the construction of both permanent and temporary winter sports facilities Construction of mass and elite urban sports facilities (including snow parks) is a relatively new phenomenon The substantiation of the need for innovative sports facilities requires a comprehensive research project, including a sociological survey Its mission is to study the demand for advanced winter sports facilities, capable of developing the physical abilities of urban residents, serving as leisure centers and focuses of urban design, but, apart from that, they help to get urban residents together in the integrated social and cultural environment [2] Literature Review International researchers analyze the operation of winter sports facilities from different perspectives [3-6] The research into customer needs is of particular attention, as it helps to design and develop safe, convenient and inexpensive sports facilities, compatible with the natural environment For example, the research, conducted by Anestis K.Fotiadis and entitled “Winter Tourism in Greece and Segmentation: the Case of Ski Centers”, was based on the sampling of 116 respondents, and the researcher studied the factors limiting the number of visits to mountain skiing centers [7] Thirty pre-set limiting factors determine the essence of the structured questionnaire (Gilbert and Hudson, 2000; Crawford, Jackson and Godbey, 1991) [8] This book provides information on the objectives, demographic characteristics of visitors, their lifestyle, recreation behavior patterns, degree of satisfaction, and other interpersonal and personality-related limitations The research dates back to the winter of 2001 – 2002 Planning, technology-related, and structural features of snow parks (and their tubing and other urban sports 1403 1404 Zinaida Ivanova and Marina Afonina / Procedia Engineering 165 (2016) 1402 – 1409 facilities), as well as the information on the construction of specific winter sports facilities, may be derived from advertisements and travelers’ reports, but few researchers focus their attention on this area [9-11] Sociological surveys into the demand for innovative sports facilities and snow parks, in particular, as well as into the satisfaction with their operation, have never been conducted yet Department of Architecture and Urban Planning of the Moscow State University of Civil Engineering has been monitoring the winter leisure and sports facilities for over ten years as part of its research project [12] As a result, snow parks and tubing facilities were clustered in one group of structures, demonstrating common planning, technology-related, ecological, social and other features Sociological polls and surveys, launched in cooperation with other departments, are of particular value in terms of the problem study The Department of Social, Psychological and Legal Communications of MGSU organizes opinion polls on the attitude of citizens to urban development solutions (Ivanova Z.I.) [13, 14] Methods Before any sports and leisure facilities (mountain skiing centers and snow parks) are designed for particular urban areas, we need to identify their expediency, practical feasibility, and the return on potential investments In their turn, these factors determine the location, the size, the composition (mountain skiing and snowboard pistes, half pipe and tubing park facilities, lifts serving temporary and engineering facilities, recreation areas, etc.), as these elements determine the complexity and expediency of any technological and planning solutions The answers to these questions employ various approaches: The analysis of parameters typical for the snow parks in sustainable operation (international experience overview) [9]; The application of new technologies, using social networks to conduct Internet-polls and to identify the best locations for temporary recreation facilities [10] Polling of visitors of the parks in operation and further comparison of the poll findings, identifying national and local features, to serve as the basis for the design of new and the operation of existing facilities In the winters of 2008 – 2016, a group of MGSU researchers monitored several winter sports facilities, including Kant, Gorky park, Sorochany, Volen, Freestyle MO, Puzhalova Gora in Gorokhovets, Zagorodny park in Samara, etc Following their long-term communications with the executives of winter leisure and sports facilities, their service partners and customers, the university researchers identified the need for a sociological survey to find out whether parks needed reorganization to serve their customers better The first step of the survey consisted in the development of a model questionnaire composed of the following questions: Demographic parameters, including sex and age of the respondents (adults versus children, age ranges), their marital status (single, married, etc.), Occupancy drivers, including affordability, attendance rate, ride period, facilities for children and adults in one park, diversification of facilities, their attractive design, etc Transport availability, travel time, destinations, etc The questionnaire identified the demand for urban tubing facilities The pilot poll helped the researchers to adjust particular questions and to develop a more detailed questionnaire for a major poll Developments Let us analyze some findings of the poll The comparison of answers given in Moscow, Moscow Region, and Samara has identified their similarity, and this fact converts into the absence of any significant difference between the needs of visitors expressed in the capital and those expressed in a major provincial town Let us analyze the factor of children 87% of Moscow-based respondents and 80% of Samara-based respondents were parents Thus, the population treats snow parks as family leisure centers Zinaida Ivanova and Marina Afonina / Procedia Engineering 165 (2016) 1402 – 1409 Fig The correlation between the number of visitors coming to Moscow and Samara snow parks with and without their children There is no difference between the capital and other major cities in terms of the responses The poll findings were consolidated, and the following findings were generated on the basis of 100 completed questionnaires (Fig 2-4) Fig Demographic parameters of the poll 1405 1406 Zinaida Ivanova and Marina Afonina / Procedia Engineering 165 (2016) 1402 – 1409 1.1 Attendance rate depending on sex: approximately the same number of males and females attend snow parks; therefore, snow parks cannot be considered as leisure areas for males or females 1.2 Attendance rate depending on age and marital status: families tend to attend snow parks (over 80% of visitors arrived with their children); 1.3 The number of children in the families which attended the snow parks: one child – about 60% of visitors; two and more children – 40% of visitors (with the two children prevailing in this category of visitors); 1.4 The age of children: 7-12 years – 58%, 3-7 years – 29%, under years – 11% Fig Occupancy rate (based on the questionnaire) 2.1 The demand for the services, provided by a snow park, is driven by its attendance rate, demonstrating how often residents use the park services The questionnaires have identified sufficiently clear results, which are more or less similar in the capital and in the regions Given the fact that a snow park is a relatively new type of recreational zones, 29% of its customers are first comers The fact that 27% of residents visit snow parks once a season means that residents are inactive in exploring new leisure activities However, those who get used to spending their free time in snow parks, visit them every day 42% of residents visit snow parks once a week; therefore, this type of Zinaida Ivanova and Marina Afonina / Procedia Engineering 165 (2016) 1402 – 1409 leisure activities enjoys apparent demand 2.2 Affordability is an important occupancy driver: almost 70% of residents find the pricing policy of snow parks acceptable, while 30% believe that prices are too high This fact must be taken into account in the course of the project development, and rates should remain at the lowest possible level Price rates should vary depending on the time of day when park services are used 2.3 53% of visitors gave a positive answer to the question “do you use park facilities yourself?” This means that each snow park must have facilities for adults and children, and the rides must serve the needs of beginners, amateurs and professionals 47% of “non-riders”, or grandmothers and mothers of toddlers attending snow parks, need care and attention This group needs convenient leisure areas for small children (marquises, toilets, heated changing rooms, etc.) 2.4 62% of visitors ride different facilities during one day; therefore, each snow park needs to diverse their rides designated for beginners, amateurs, and professionals [15] 2.5 Affective evaluation is an important occupancy factor: 91% responded that they “liked the park”, 9% indicated that they had “no answer” 67% of the respondents wanted the snow parks to rework their schedules and services provision patterns Fig Spatial coverage and accessibility of snow parks 3.1 70% of visitors are local residents, while the remaining 30% reside within the range of 20 km This regularity is typical both for Moscow and for other towns 3.2 Travel time is an important occupancy driver: it takes 76% of the respondents less than 30 minutes to get to the snow park; the travel time of 24% of the respondents is less than 60 minutes 3.3 Transport accessibility represents another occupancy driver 29% of visitors come to snow parks on foot, 62% use their personal vehicles, and 9% use public transport to get to snow parks Public transport is only used in provincial towns to get to parks, as the travel time is less than 60 minutes and the travel route is simple 1407 1408 Zinaida Ivanova and Marina Afonina / Procedia Engineering 165 (2016) 1402 – 1409 Conclusions The survey has identified identical snow park planning specifications requested by the respondents both in the capital, and in other Russian cities and towns Dissimilarities are insignificant: in Moscow, snow parks are venues, where visitors come to spend their spare time not only with their families, but also with their friends No visitors travel to snow parks by public transport in the capital and its environs; in Samara, customers ride a bus to reach the snow park 2% of residents visit snow parks every day Given the fact that 67% of visitors are local residents, coming to snow parks on foot (29%), and 82% of them take their children to snow parks, we can make a conclusion that urban snow parks represent an important constituent of residential areas designated for family entertainment If we reconcile the findings of our poll, including the big share of first-time visitors (29%) and high appreciation of the snow park services (91% “liked the park”), we can make a conclusion that snow parks will enjoy higher demand in the future This conclusion is also supported by the willingness of visitors to have snow parks improved (67% of the respondents insist that park rides need diversification) As the percentage of children vising snow parks is high, snow parks need a bigger number of pistes and rides for children Training sessions must be available there, as well Toddlers also need rides, exercisers and safe playgrounds next to other rides, as 62% of visitors use several rides during one visit It is expedient to take advantage of the subterranean space and to accommodate changing rooms, sports gear rent rooms, coffee rooms, restaurants and cafeterias there, in order to solve the problem of deficiency of unoccupied overground areas The findings of this sociological survey are important for the development of planning solutions for snow parks The availability of this new family recreation/sports facility is important in Russia [16] The coauthors of this article will continue their research by studying the European experience of organizing and operating snow parks The coauthors will also identify the needs of snow park customers in the countries where winter sports are particularly popular References [1] A.D Ishkov, M.Y Mishlanova, K.P Grabovyi, The Organization of Innovative Activities of A Construction Company, International Journal of Applied Engineering Research 3(11) (2016) 1676-1679 [2] I.P Pryadko, Contradictions of the urbanistic culture development: the socioeconomic aspect, International Journal of Applied Engineering Research 10(21) (2015) 42147-42152 [3] R Matzler, J Fuller, B Renzl, S Herting, S Spath, Customer satisfaction with alpine ski areas: the moderating effects of personal, situational, and product factors, Journal of Travel Research 46(4) (2008) 403-413 [4] G Siomkos, C Vasiliadis, P Lathiras, Measuring customer preferences in the winter sports market: the case of Greece, Journal of Targeting, Measurement and Analysis for Marketing 14 (2006) 139–140 [5] S Dolnicar, F Leisch, Winter tourist segments in Austria: Identifying stable vacation styles using bagged clustering techniques, Journal of Travel Research 41 (2003) 281–92 [6] J Phillips, P Brunt, Tourist differentiation: Developing a typology for the winter sports market, Tourism: An International Interdisciplinary Journal 3(61) (2013) 219–243 [7] K.A Fotiadis, Winter Tourism in Greece and Segmentation: the Case of Ski Centres, Arabian Journal of Business & Management Review 1(1) (2011) 31-41 [8] W Crawford, L Jackson and G Godbey, A Hierarchical Model of Leisure Constraints, Leisure Sciences 13 (1991) 309-320 [9] M.I Afonina, M Pairavand, Classification and Examples of Temporary Urban Winter Sports Facilities, Prospero 5(17) (2015) 9-13 [10] M.I Afonina, M Pairavand, E.S Sokolova, Recreational tubing parks as planning and design solutions, Ekologiya urbanizirovannykh territorii (2015) 79-83 [11] M.I Afonina, Extreme winter sports slopes in conditions of large cities, Science Studies, an online journal (2012) Information on http://cyberleninka.ru/article/n/ekstremalnye-zimnie-sportivnye-trassy-v-usloviyah-bolshih-gorodov [12] M.I Afonina, M Pairavand, Snow Tubing Routes as Modern Urban Recreation-Sporting Venues, TTGASU Proceedings (2016) 61-69 [13] Z.I Ivanova, O.V Yudenkova, Sociological methods for sustainable urban design, Applied Mechanics and Materials 737 (2015) 909-912 [14] Z.I Ivanova, T.N Golomazova, The Necessity of Opinion Polls for the Town Planning Analysis within Municipalities, Stroitel`stvo: nauka i obrazovanie (2014) Information on http://www.nso-journal.ru [15] A.D Ishkov, T.N Magera, Emotional competency in an engineering university: yes or no?, Procedia Engineering 117 (2015) 148-153 Zinaida Ivanova and Marina Afonina / Procedia Engineering 165 (2016) 1402 – 1409 1409 [16] I.P Prjadko, Is the urban Environment Comfortable for Children (Construction of Playgrounds and Leisure Centers for Children as a Way to Solve Social Problems in Moscow and Moscow Region), Integration, Partnership, and Innovations in the Civil Engineering Science and Education Collected works of the International Science Conference Moscow State University of Civil Engineering (2013) 241-243