Pace of Breslau park improvements now dependent on fundraising

Task force looking into options agree to a plan, now the emphasis is on public feedback and funding models

A NEW PLAYGROUND FOR tots is the first item to be tackled at Breslau Memorial Park, with more to come now that the committee overseeing its revitalization has agreed to a plan.

Deemed unsafe, the original playground equipment has been removed, with Woolwich earmarking $30,000 for a replacement structure to be built this year.

Further improvements, including a splash pad, are coming, subject to a community-led fundraising drive.

The process had been at a standstill while the often-competing interests of various groups were being worked out. Now, the organizing committee has signed off on a tentative plan for restructuring the park and its offerings.

Along with a new major feature in the form of a splash park, the plan envisions making better use of the space by relocating the tennis courts in a swap for some disjointed parking areas, rejuvenating the volleyball courts and adding a picnic pavilion and washrooms. Improved landscaping, trails and sitting areas are also on the list.

The improvements are expected to be phased in over time as the community raises money and the township budget allows, says Ann McArthur, Woolwich’s director of recreation and facilities. How much of the list actually gets done will also depend on community feedback.

The pace is largely dictated by finances. Prompted by a public outcry against a plan to sell part of the park to house a new school. The Waterloo Catholic District School Board had offered $1.75 million in cash, plus the costs of some upgrades to the community centre in return for four acres of land,

with plans to build a replacement for St. Boniface school in Maryhill. That money would have been used to upgrade the park, but residents opposed the deal in favour of keeping the park intact and raising the money through other means.

With everyone on the steering committee onboard with the new plan, the fundraising efforts can be stepped up, suggested Coun. Larry Shantz, who’s a member of the group along with fellow Ward 3 representative Murray Martin.

There’s a bigger hill to climb without the school board money, he acknowledged.

“I think it’s something that the communities have done over the years, right? Like all the small communities have taken care of their own parks and with help from the township,” he said of the fundraising process that has served residents well in the past.

With some concrete plans and an artistic concept for park improvements, organizers can now go to the public for support, added Shantz.

“I think it’s something that the community can get a hold of and start working on it, and that’s why we have a concept drawing. If they want to do any fundraising or anything like that, then they got something to work towards and a plan in place ... That’s why we wanted to go with the concept drawing originally.”

Woolwich will also begin setting aside money for future improvements, having tapped into its budget this year to remove the old playground ($5,000) and replace it ($30,000).

“This year, they’ve already committed $35,000 on top of our regular operating budget down there – operating and maintenance budget,” said McArthur of township spending. “Plus we’ve dedicated one individual to go down for some parttime hours to help do some work down in the park.”

Meeting last week, Woolwich councillors approved the preliminary plans to revamp the park, welcoming a madein-Breslau solution to improvements there.

“It’s been a lot of hard work to get to this place. We finally found something the group could endorse,” said Martin of the process.

Groups such as the Breslau Rec. Association are planning a number of events where the new drawings will be on display and the public can provide feedback, said McArthur of the next steps.