Toronto just got a new phone-free adult play centre for social reintegration
After all these lockdowns, adults in Toronto might just need to socially reintegrate somewhere we all made our first friends: the playground.
Reset's new community centre is designed to be just that: a play centre for adults.
One thing we didn't have back when we were toddlers at the playground, though, was cell phones. Reset has taken this into account with a phone-free policy, but don't worry too much: it's mostly to ensure the new space is all play and absolutely no work.
You actually lock away your phone in a special provided locker when you arrive.
Located in Little Jamaica, the community centre located is run by Reset, a local community group that's already been around since 2015 and is already well acquainted with phonelessness.
Your digital detox locker for any distracting items.
The group started out running adult "digital detox" summer camps just outside Toronto. Unfortunately, lockdowns forced the camps to go on hiatus, which led them to create public pop-up playgrounds for adults over 2021.
"Our goal is to create a place where we can help safely facilitate Torontonians' reintroduction to each other, accelerating our city's social reconnection and recovery," says the member-run organization.
The new digital detox retreat centre includes a pop-up playground element as well as two other structured activity elements, Dance Dance Karaoke and Laughter Practice.
The Forest.
There are also group and solo activities outside of regular scheduled programming, and there's a community garden and "art forest."
Dance Dance Karaoke is a "choose-your-own adventure" experience of dancing, singing and meditating, and Laughter Practice is a guided discussion for small private groups on "how to laugh better."
Your first two visits are free, and from there tickets for events and programs as well as memberships are available on a sliding scale.
The Centre is now open at 634 Vaughan Rd.
Reset Community Centre
