Residents get a chance to weigh in
Organizers estimate approximately 50 people turned out for an event at the Village Hall earlier this week to update residents on the Lions Bay Beach Park revitalization project.
Information about the project was not offered by a live presenter at the event on Wednesday night. Instead, residents were invited to view and comment upon visual representations of the current design. Staff, members of Council, and the architect were on hand to garner feedback.
While some residents deemed the new structure elegant and well-suited to the surroundings, others were not so sure.
Long-time resident Rob Simons was a part of the design team for the Lori Beck Memorial, and lives in a home located above the beach park. He said that he liked the design, but had reservations about the location and size of planned kayak storage.
Former mayor Brenda Broughton expressed a number of concerns, chief among them her opposition to the relocation of the washroom facility onto existing open field space. "Flat land is rare in Lions Bay and is required as play and event space," she said.
Among Broughton's other suggestions was a change to the orientation of the washroom building and that the concession area be scrapped as not cost-effective, based on her past experience running the Lions Bay Store.
"The location is also an invitation to drive off the highway, park at entrance, run to the washroom and run back to the car," she said in a comment to The Watershed after the event. "Crimes involve opportunity and this location creates opportunity. It is worrisome and may mean our children of all ages will need to be escorted to the washroom for safety. It can also be an attractant for much more overnight tenting, which currently is just occasional."
One Isleview resident said she thought the design of the new facility was gorgeous. "It's not perfect, but we need to get this thing built so we don't lose the grant money."
While former mayor Ron McLaughlin calls the new design 'visually striking", he says "it is unfortunate that it has taken all 27 months of this administration’s term to come up with a rendering that is likely very expensive, and left insignificant time for broad public engagement prior to a decision being made."
The special Village Update also included an updated project timeline, (as shown in the infographic).
Chief Administrative Officer Ross Blackwell says the timeline will be subject to changes as the project progresses.
"This project represents an opportunity to create a welcoming, functional, and sustainable park that meets the needs of all residents and visitors," wrote Blackwell when announcing the event.
The design team for the latest iteration of this project is Nick Bray Architects, who are currently featuring the design on their website, and whose representatives were present at the event.
Luxury homebuilders Eurohouse Group will be responsible for construction.
Staff collected public responses on the evening in the form of sticky notes attached to the displays as well as longer-form responses, and is collating them for a presentation to Council for a decision on Tuesday.
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