Village Green set to open this month

As finishing touches are being made at Creemore’s new Village Green, planning is well underway for opening weekend on August 20-21.

The celebration will include a ribbon cutting, entertainment and activities to welcome visitors as they experience the park for the fist time.

This week, the grass is going in, gardens are blooming and the main features have been installed. Although the hoarding is still up, people can already see some of the park’s features that pay homage to the property’s railway heritage.

A 16-foot main entrance sign post is modelled after a locomotive light done in 24kt gold leaf by Shane Durnford Studios, the same sign maker who created many of the wooden projecting signs in the village.

From the sign post, an interlocking stone walkway follows the path of the original railway, leading to the Station on the Green, a replica of Creemore’s train station. Nine inlaid granite markers that mimic railway ties tell the history of the land, from the ice age on, moving in time through important milestones to the present, beginning with an Indigenous land acknowledgement. A second stone walkway connects to the Cenotaph, library, jail and log cabin. The walkways border lawns, gardens to be managed by the Horticultural Society, and wooden platforms protecting the old trees preserved on the site.

The park is anchored by a large covered stage that is designed to look like a train station platform, and will serve as a performance area for many different community groups.

The park is equipped with new LED lighting, wifi, and bike racks.

In addition to a new splash pad, the fountain has been restored and placed on its new base, and Ernest Herzig’s sculpture entitled Harmony has also been reinstalled.

The Village Green, a project of the Creemore Community Foundation, aims to create a community space, rich in history, that would be a meeting space and a regional landmark.