A revitalization plan for Duntroon’s Islay Park was presented to Clearview Township council last Monday night. Jim Campbell, a member of the Nottawasaga Community Hall board, presented the plan. Board members are spearheading the project because the park is located next to the hall, on County Road 91, west of County Road 124. Board members, other volunteers in the community and municipal staff started planning for the revitalization project last year. The first phase will go ahead sometime this summer. According to a map of what the new park will look like, parking will be moved off County Road 91, to the northern part of the park, allowing for a total of 48 spaces. Campbell says the new location will be safer for park and hall users, who at the moment must park their vehicles along the southern portion of the county road and then walk along the road to access the park or the hall. The ball diamond in the park will be shifted to the south in order to accommodate the new parking lot. The diamond’s outfield will also be usable for soccer. New playground equipment will replace the old and out of date equipment that currently exists. The plan is to place the equipment just west of the hall, near where the existing equipment is located. A picnic area, including tables, will also be located just west of the hall. The plan calls for an outdoor stage to be added to the west side of the hall. As well, hiking and biking trails will be erected through a forested section at the south and west perimeter of the almost five-acre park. Officials also plan to move the entrance to the hall, from the east side of the building to the west side of the building, to better incorporate it and the parking lot. The work might also involve the installation of ground source heating loops beneath the playing field. The system, Campbell said, would be used to heat the hall. He said at the moment that component, however, is still up in the air as volunteers are trying to determine the cost and feasibility. The revitalization work will be paid for from several sources and conducted in three phases. Phase one, which officials say will start sometime this summer and hopefully be completed by the fall, will cost approximately $105,000. The first phase involves building the new parking lot, constructing sidewalks, moving the backstop for the ball diamond and the installation of new playground equipment and lighting. A berm will be constructed between the parking lot and the ball diamond. The township will contribute approximately $97,000 toward the first phase. Clearview’s portion was earmarked in the 2009 municipal budget. Officials also hope to generate $1,000 for the project by selling a shed that’s on the property. Campbell says they have also applied for a $25,000 grant through Ontario Hydro, which awards money for park upgrading projects. If the grant application is approved that money would offset Clearview’s contribution. Another $5,000 will come from fundraising. To generate the money, Campbell says a door-to-door canvassing campaign will be done sometime this year. Some fundraising events are also planned for this year and he said some corporations, including Walker Industries, which runs the quarry further to the west on County Road 91, have expressed interest in helping with the project. Phase two will involve extending the playing field and tree planting. A third phase consists of building the trails and the stage. Phase two and three haven’t been costed yet. The timeline for the second and third phase work isn’t known yet either and Campbell said it’s possible some of the work could be incorporated into the first phase. Members of council said they were impressed with the plan and the hard work that has gone into the project. “Parking there has been one of my pet peeves,” Mayor Ken Ferguson said. “I’m glad to see this going ahead.” Ward 5 councillor Robert Walker, a volunteer with Clearview Community Theatre, which uses the hall to present shows, said he too is looking forward to better parking. He said the parking that exists is hazardous. Deputy Mayor Alicia Savage commended the volunteers working on the project. “I hope to see more of this kind of thing coming forward,” she said. The park has a long history in the community. It was once farmland owned by P.T. McDermid. Information on a plaque at the park indicates that McDermid donated the land in 1936 to the Duntroon Women’s Institute. He gave the land in memory of his father, Peter McDermid, a native of Islay, Scotland. The Women’s Institute, when it disbanded a couple years ago, donated the land to the municipality.
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