10 projects proposed for Walkerville district revitalization plan
Ten big projects are being proposed to build on Walkerville’s “incredible” history and character, from better connecting to riverfront parkland and pathways to creating an urban square.
Now the public is being asked to chime in with opinions and suggestions on the ideas as the Walkerville Districting Plan moves toward completion.
“There are so many pieces there that this plan moving forward will fill,” Ward 4 Coun. Chris Holt said Thursday during a Zoom news briefing to call for people to provide feedback via an online survey. After holding a workshop with residents in December to gather ideas, consultants have come up with 10 Initiatives, Improvements, Projects and Opportunities (IIPOS):
Create a linear park out of the unused rail spur that runs from the Via station west into Walkerville.
Connect Walkerville with the riverfront park system with a safe crossing across Riverside Drive.
Create a parkette at Riverside Drive and Devonshire Road to house the recently completed sculpture of Walkerville founder and whisky baron Hiram Walker. The parkette is part of an application to the federal and provincial governments to largely fund $57 million for six projects from city hall to Walkerville.
Make an urban square, perhaps with a market, restaurants and cafés, on vacant land at Devonshire and Assumption Street.
Transform Argyle and Monmouth roads into “flexible streets” that can be occasionally closed to vehicles.
Activate an alley as a pilot project, making it a destination: a safe, inviting and “really cool place to be.”
“Rebalance” busy Riverside Drive so it’s safer and more functional for all users, including bikes, pedestrians and cars.
Create a gateway to Walkerville on Wyandotte Street just west of Walker Road.
Celebrate the former town’s history and architecture using plaques, signs and other methods.
Establish a wayfinding program, with signs pointing people to attractions and businesses.
Holt, a Walkerville resident, said districting will build on the strength of the neighbourhood. “We’re halfway there. We’ve got the bones to really show the rest of the city what successful districting looks like.”
The goal is not to change the name or feel of the area, he stressed, but to enhance and connect the special attributes already there. “What I like about (the plan) is it’s built by and for the residents, and low and behold that will attract other people as well.”
Nathan Flach, from consulting firm Brook Mcilroy, said the December
workshop brought a wealth of suggestions from residents, who talked about adding trees, seating and tables, food vendors, parks, plazas, splash pads, skating rinks, washrooms and other features.
“The ideas were so inspiring and so thoughtful and authentically Walkerville,” he said.
The suggestions have been boiled down to the 10 IIPOS. After the public provides more input, the plan will be refined into a final concept for council’s consideration. Walkerville is the first of six districting projects planned by the city, which has budgeted $5 million to build on the neighbourhoods’ history and identity.
Mayor Drew Dilkens said it’s not yet known what the Walkerville districting will cost. But if the city has to spend every penny of the $5 million on Walkerville, it should, to “stitch together the assets in an extremely authentic part of our community,” he said, noting that the private sector has already done much of the heavy lifting to make Walkerville a local gem. He wants the end results in Walkerville to be so impressive that the entire city will back districting in the other neighbourhoods in future years.
“I really can’t stress enough how much the Walkerville districting project means to our community.” The mayor added that in the POST-COVID-19 world, the tourism sector will need support. “And I truly see districting as one of the key pieces as we move forward.”
Flach recounted the origins of Walkerville, starting with an Iroquois
village on the riverfront, through French settlement to Walker’s arrival in the 1850s as he assembled 468 acres of land for his distillery. He set about creating a company town where he owned almost everything, including the buildings, roads, the water supply, police station, railway, ferry service and grain fields. It evolved into a village, which could boast some of the finest examples of urban design for the time, he said. The town, which was annexed by Windsor in 1935, lost some of its landmarks, such as its train station and ferry dock in the mid-1900s, but starting in the 1970s there was a renewed interest in saving and restoring many of its grand old buildings.
“We’re left today with not only a really remarkably intact collection of architecture, but also all of these elements of urban design and landscapes and streetscapes that Walker had envisioned early on,” Flach said. “Today, that sense of pride and ownership and the unique sense of place in Walkerville are really present everywhere you go.”