Pokémon GO craze sweeps Richmond Hill
Firefighters set up Smokémon event at Richmond Green

YorkRegion.com
July 21, 2016
Kim Zarzour

Nickta Jowhari remembers being six years old and forcing her father to watch an episode of Pokémon to prove it wasn’t a violent TV show.

Today, Jowhari is a university student, her father is Richmond Hill’s Liberal MP, and Pokémon has taken over her yard, the streets of her hometown and apparently, the world.

“My front lawn is full of jiggly puffs. #JustMyLuck,” the Richmond Hill resident posted on social media this week.

Jowhari was one of hundreds this past week catching Pokémon at Rotary Club Park, considered one of the best PokéStops in the area.

Richmond Green has been another hot spot and further to the south, Saddle Creek was spawning a few more Lapras Nidoking Nidoqueen, Vaporeon Blastoise, Gengar and Magmar.

If you don’t know what we’re talking about, it can only be because you’ve been away camping off-grid for the week, because it seems everyone everywhere is talking about the Pokémon GO craze.

In a nutshell, Pokémon GO is a free app that allows players to search for the cartoon creatures in real-world locations, “capture them” in Poké Balls and train them for battle.

Nintendo seems to have lucked onto the perfect storm: a generation glued to digital devices, tuned in to nostalgia and looking for ways to connect in this great summer weather.

Jowhari is fully versed on the craze and, like her six-year-old self that watched the TV show and played on a Gameboy Advance she got for Christmas, she is fully hooked.

“I had to dig through my basement, pump air into my childhood bike and just get out of the house to explore,” she says.

“I’m practically begging my brother every night to bike with me or even go for a walk. So many families are bonding over this and even older generations … It’s a great way to make new friends and learn about community landmarks.”

Strangely, rare Pokémon have been lingering in her own front yard and she teases her father, MP Majid Jowhari, that it may be because they know he lives there.

“They’re technically virtual constituents,” she laughs.

Not everyone’s laughing, though.

Mary Lynn Mulroney has seen many around her neighbourhood at Major Mackenzie and Bathurst — her 29-year-old son even caught one on their chimney — but some neighbours weren’t so thrilled.

“One is in the midst of moving. The other is quiet and doesn’t need a crowd on his front lawn.”

And when it’s not your yard but a fire station or hospital, there are even bigger concerns.

Vaughan Fire and Emergency Services are asking that people stay away from two fire stations, saying that people are in the way and the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto asked players not to drop lures there out of safety concerns.

Mackenzie Health in York Region has not noticed an increase in activity associated with Pokémon GO in buildings or on hospital grounds, according to spokesperson Stefanie Kreibe, but she reminds players to be aware of surroundings and avoid scaling fences and structures to gain access to Pokémon locations.

The Sharon Temple National Historic Site in East Gwillimbury is putting signs around the perimeter of the site and advised, on a York Region Pokémon webpage, against jumping fences or scaling gates during non-business hours, adding that the PokéStop is accessible from the sidewalk and parking lot.

It is rare for a Pokémon to spawn in someone’s back yard, but OPP is warning trainers that playing the game isn’t an excuse to trespass.

People were reported gathering across the region this week — Newmarket’s Main Street, public libraries, town halls, downtown Unionville, Vaughan Mills Mall, Milliken Mills Park and the McMichael Canadian Art Collection in Kleinburg all saw Pokémon action.

Benjamin Smith has been chasing the game across Richmond Hill and discovered Dorothy Price Park has three PokéStops and there are several on each block in the village core.

“Right now the tracker is kinda buggy, but I have caught some interesting Pokémon around Benson and Hall,” he says. “I was never the biggest Pokémon fan growing up, but I really like this concept of game. It gives people a reason to go outside and interact with others. We too often have created social barriers to accomplish that comfortably.”

Others are trying to use the Pokémon craze for public good. Monica Hadden, public educator for Richmond Hill Fire and Emergency Services, capitalized on the trend Wednesday with a Smokémon event to raise awareness for fire safety, giving away smoke alarms to the first 20 trainers to arrive at a PokéStop in Richmond Hill.

Jowhari likes the idea.

“It would be great if they applied the ideology behind the success of this app to important things. such as healthcare, volunteer opportunities or community events,” she says.

Georgina Pioneer Village is capitalizing on the opportunity by setting lures to attract people to the site.

Jowhari thinks Richmond Hill should take note.

“Pokémon GO features Richmond Hill landmarks and historic sights. In other words, it incentivizes going to those locations. The Richmond Hill Historical Society should take advantage of this.

“If more community members learned the history behind these sites, they would be more inclined to support the preservation of our town’s heritage, especially at a time when all these new buildings are being constructed and overshadowing our town’s history.”