Motion sunk beach: mayor
Campion says sandy canal playground not dead in the water
The idea of a beach on Welland’s waterfront isn’t dead, the mayor says.
“I don’t think so,” Frank Campion said Friday.
“When we were at (Tuesday’s council) meeting, I didn’t hear anyone say they were opposed to a beach. There is support for looking into the possibility of a beach.”
Campion said he and his fellow councillors who defeated a motion by Ward 3 Coun. John Chiocchio were concerned over its wording.
Chiocchio’s motion directed staff to “investigate and put a conceptual plan together to develop a beach type and watersport park at the Lincoln Street docks; and that costs associated including municipal funding, grants available through both provincial and federal funding and stakeholders that may want to participate; and further that this project, if approved by council be executed by spring/ summer 2018.”
Said Campion, “We tried several amendments, but none could make it workable.”
What Campion saw as problematic was tying funding from other levels of government into the project and putting it into the 2018 budget to have it ready by next summer. He said securing funding might not be possible and that could leave Welland taxpayers on the hook for the whole project.
In his years as a councillor, and now as mayor, Campion said wording on motions is not open to interpretation, and whatever is in a motion becomes the rules or sets the standards for what happens.
“The whole thing could fall apart or, more on the dangerous side, it moves forward and we have to build it based on a certain amount of money. Caution is required when making a motion like this.”
He had hoped Chiocchio would have considered holding off on the motion until a report came forward from city staff on the Go Quiet bylaw. In that report, there are comments from the public about a beach or watersport-type park in the area of the Lincoln Street docks and scuba park.
“The concept of a beach should flow out of the alternative uses for the canal,” Campion said, adding the report should be at the next council meeting.
Campion said the parcel of land around the Lincoln Street docks must be looked at as a whole, especially with a skate park going in at the north end near Lincoln Street, and a dog park at the southern end.
“There’s a variety of uses … we have to look at what could fit there. The bigger the project and the more inclusive, the chance for grants is greater.”