Harrison Hot Springs councillors have been mulling over another playground for villagers and visitors alike.
Council has yet to act on a potential play area for Woods Park on the east end of the village, a proposal that has been in motion since early April.
Back in March, Harrison resident Kelli Easton wrote a letter to Mayor Ed Wood, expressing concern that no money would be allocated to the recreation/playground equipment fund for the next five years. She wrote that with more young families coming to the village, now more than ever, the local parks “are in need of some TLC.”
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“The horseshoe pits are overgrown. The basketball court is covered in branches, leaves, and dirt and there are no balls (or other equipment) available in the community bin located within the basketball court,” Easton wrote. “The playgrounds are not challenging for all kids and none of them present inclusive opportunities.”
Suggestions from Easton’s children included a parkour area, skate park and bike pump track for Spring Park as well as reinstalling swing sets on the beach at Harrison Lake. After speaking with parents in the area, Easton further noted that the southeast portion of the village was lacking in playgrounds.
At the April 3 council meeting, council asked staff to come back with an estimate of costs for a small play area in Woods Park. Council asked that no trees be removed and that staff canvass engagement from residents of nearby Driftwood and Cottonwood Avenues.
According to a report from operations manager/acting deputy CAO Tyson Koch, without cutting trees, there would be an area measuring 12 metres by 18 metres toward the middle of the park for the play area. Three options with various playground equipment ranging from $19,000 to $75,000.
Feedback from residents was mixed, from full support to suggesting amenities on the beach to leaving the park as is.
During the May 1 council meeting, Koch reported about 25 properties around Woods Park – an entire subdivision – were not sent a notification looking for their feedback on the playground’s potential construction. This prompted Koch to suggest the matter be sent back to staff.
Couns. John Buckley and Michie Vidal agreed that waiting for further public engagement from the residents surrounding Woods Park would be best.
Coun. Allan Jackson voted against tabling the proposal, frustrated with council for “kicking the can down the road.”
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“We’re looking at a playground for little children, not a big edifice,” he said. “This is not rocket science. I don’t want this to get pushed back and back again like a ping-pong ball. We’re elected to make decisions, not put things off until the next day.”
Council voted 3-2 to have staff look into allocating funding for the playground this year as well as having staff look into additional options for the potential playground. Jackson and Wood were opposed.
This village administration is also looking to wrap up another important item on Harrison’s recreation wishlist – an off-leash dog park. The long-running discussion currently focuses on two properties: a one-acre lot adjacent to McCombs Drive and the half-acre lot on Hot Springs Road normally used for reserve parking during the peak tourism season.
The McCombs Drive location is currently on the Agricultural Land Reserve, a provincial zone in which agriculture is given priority use over all other potential land uses. Village staff presented council with a potential temporary solution during the May 15 meeting – setting up a temporary park at the Hot Springs Road lot. It was ultimately voted down 1-2 with Jackson and Wood opposed. Vidal was the only supporting vote, and Buckley and Coun. Leo Facio were absent from the most recent council meeting.
Council will revisit the Woods Park playground issue during the June 5 meeting, scheduled at Memorial Hall (290 Esplanade Avenue) beginning at 7 p.m. The venue is at any time subject to change and the meeting will be made available via Zoom and later archived on the village’s official YouTube channel. For the Zoom link, agendas, meeting minutes and more, visit harrisonhotsprings.ca.
adam.louis@ ahobserver.com
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