Skate park needs washrooms: Grimaldi

Welland’s new skate park is almost complete, but what’s being left out doesn’t sit well with one city councillor.

A report from the city’s facilities manager said aside from landscaping, lighting and site furnishings, the skate park off Lincoln Street, on the west side of the Welland Recreational Canal, is substantially complete.

Plans for it also included an accessible washroom, but, said the report from James O’Neill, “due to unforeseen challenges with the sanitary servicing of the site, and the associated costs, construction of the bathroom cannot be completed …”

At Tuesday’s city council meeting, Ward 1’s Mary Ann Grimaldi wanted to send the report back to get more information on the washrooms.

Erik Nickel, the city’s general manager of infrastructure services, told Grimaldi the deadline to have work completed on the site, and meet Canada 150 Community Infrastructure Program funding, is March 31 and that the city wouldn’t be able to build a washroom before then.

Not having the washroom won’t affect the funding the city is receiving as it was allowed to instead install Wi-Fi, benches, security cameras and signage at the skate park, Nickel said.

“I’m disappointed … without accessible washrooms I can’t support this report,” said Grimaldi, who made a failed motion to refer the report to next week’s committee meeting.

Nickel said portable washrooms will be about 150 metres away from the skate park and that people could use those.

He said washroom plans will be looked at in the city’s recreation master plan, but Grimaldi didn’t want to wait for that to be done.

“I don’t want to wait … I don’t think it’s fair for people with accessibility issues,” she said, adding city staff should have known about the issues with servicing the area.

Ward 3 Coun. John Chiocchio said the skate park is already booming and asked if more portable washrooms could be brought there while the permanent washroom is figured out.

Nickel said the city could look at that option and explained the washroom that had been proposed for the site is expensive and the city is exploring options for a facility with better value.

Ward 4 Coun. Tony DiMarco suggested users of the skate park, and nearby recreational trail, could use facilities at the wellness complex on the east side of the canal.