Halifax Common

The Halifax Common is a large open green space in the heart of the peninsula, straddling the Central Common and the Wanderers Grounds. In winter the Emera Oval, installed for the 2011 Canada Games, operates as a free outdoor skating rink on the Commons — one of the largest free skating surfaces in Canada, and a genuine Halifax winter experience. In summer the Common is a network of playing fields, running paths, and gathering spaces, considerably less formal than the nearby Public Gardens.

The Commons is the city's civic lungs, used for everything from Canada Day concerts to neighbourhood pickup games. The Wanderers Grounds section hosts Halifax's professional soccer club HFX Wanderers FC. The whole area is flat and easy to walk through, connecting the peninsula's north and south sections. In summer the adjacent Dal Arts Centre and university buildings give the Commons a student-town energy on weekday afternoons.

things to do sight park
A story
The Halifax Common is one of the oldest public parks in North America, set aside as common land by the British military in 1763 — before most Canadian cities existed. Unlike many city commons that were gradually enclosed over the centuries, Halifax's has remained public space continuously for over 250 years, though its functions have shifted from grazing land to sport fields and gathering space.