Some residents oppose Nottawa park improvements
Following a community meeting about proposed improvements to McKean Memorial Park, resident Jeff Shearer has issued an open letter to the mayor and council outlining the concerns of residents opposed to the addition of new amenities.
In a summary of concerns voiced at the meeting and online, Shearer says there is a desire to see the park’s green space preserved.
“We must preserve at all costs the green spaces in our community and specifically in our small park, especially given the coming new residential development immediately south of us and directly contiguous to our McKean neighbourhood,” writes Shearer.
Plans to make improvements to the park go back many, many years. The park is mainly open field with playground equipment, a soccer pitch, and the water supply system for the subdivision.
“I’ve had many residents ask me over the years about putting in an ice pad, maybe a basketball court, that kind of thing,” said Doug Measures, who was the council rep for Nottawa prior to being elected mayor. “Just like anything else there are citizens who want something like that and then citizens who are opposed.”
In June, a community meeting was held to talk about the plans, which are said to have been created with input from residents who support park improvements. The proposed plan presented to the community for feedback includes a cement pad that could double as an ice rink and a basketball court, a walking trail around the circumference of the park, and a gravel parking area in the first phase initially planned for 2024. Phase 2 includes additional parking bringing the total spots to about 12, a plaza with benches, and pickleball courts.
There is a proposal to supply electricity to the park to light the courts, and one resident suggested a water supply would be a good idea, in the form of a fountain or tap.
The parking is to accommodate vehicles because the deep ditches make street parking difficult, explained Measures.
In the 2023 budget, council supported the addition of a multi-use recreation pad for McKean Memorial Park, equipped for basketball and skating, in the amount of $100,000.
At the time staff reported that these projects had been previously approved by council but “fell through the cracks” and were unintentionally omitted from previous budgets.
Shearer tells council that the pickle ball and basketball courts would be better located at the ball diamond park, and that a skating rink could be made on the grass. He says, “it was pointed out that there are basketball courts at the school and many of us have basketball nets for our kids on our paved driveways.”
The concerns also outline opposition to the removal of mature trees to make room for the parking lots.
“In a walking community like this, the idea of adding a parking lot seems to be crazy to us and not necessary,” said Shearer.
He said some residents have become suspicious that the improvements had something to do with the development to the south.
“The biggest issue isn’t the park. The biggest issue is losing potable water supply in wells for all of Nottawa,” said Shearer. “All of a sudden the park seems almost inconsequential.”
When the McKean subdivision was built about 25 years ago, there was an impact on the water supply to other Nottawa residents.
In an effort to find water and sewer servicing for the project acquired by Georgian Communities, known as the ‘Village of Nottawa,’ township staff is recommending an expansion of the McKean Water System to supply the first phase of the development, 118 single family detached units.
Clearview Township director of public works Dan Perreault reported, “Georgian Communities approached the township in 2021 to conduct a test well location investigation program, which was subsequently undertaken by Crozier Consulting Engineers in May 2022. The findings of the investigation indicated that expansion of the existing McKean water supply system is feasible, and that this solution could service both existing and future drinking water supply demands.”
There will be a community meeting hosted by Georgian Communities about the development on Thursday, August 15. At presstime, Georgian Communities was in the process of finalizing the details, which will be posted at georgiancommunities.ca.
Councillor Phyllis Dineen told The Echo it is her hope that there will be further public consultation on the park improvements before any plans are approved.
Trina Berlo photo: McKean subdivision resident Jeff Shearer is opposing plans for improvements to McKean Memorial Park, along with some neighbours who attended a recent meeting with township staff. Their concerns extend to the expansion of their water system to supply a new adjacent development.
