Planning and social appropriation of proximal sports facilities: the case of the exterior skating rink project ‘Bleu Blanc Bouge’ in Montreal North

The worldwide obesity epidemic, caused particularly by a lack of daily physical activity, is regrettable. Hence, many recent studies have demonstrated that many elements linked to the layout and appropriation of sports facilities can have a positive effect and lead to the integration of healthy habits. This article aims to analyze, through a case study that took place in a Montreal North neighborhood, the social impacts as well as the effects on the physical fitness of the local population following the building of an outdoor skating rink. This study, based on a mixed design, allows us to demonstrate that the building of proximal sports facilities invites the population to engage in physical activity and renews certain forms of social appropriation and territorial attachment.