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| 4 ash trees have been killed by the ash borer |
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| Thanks to the Parks Dept. for our lovely new fall planter |
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| Blank slate |
The Arts for Children and Youth initiative will be a beautiful addition to the park. The project will include a mosaic mural to be installed on the retaining wall lining the path to the parking lot. (An example of an AFCY project can be seen at the Jack Layton Ferry Docks. http://www.afcy.ca/gallery/ ) This will be a community driven project so AFCY need us to come up with concepts and ideas for the imagery. If you have a great idea, pass it along! (I think since this pathway is so integral to the pedestrian and bicycle culture of our community, it would be great to honour that in the mural. Think about it, if you push a buggy of groceries home from No Frills, bike north or south through Roseneath Park, or have been walking your kids to school since they were in a stroller through the park, you know this pathway intimately!)
The landscape architect, Eric Hess, presented his ideas. Again, here, the plans are not set in stone and your feedback is very important. The plans included a shaded and naturalized sand area. This would be created by adding a wooden border and shade to our current sand area.
For the west side, a sculpture that would double as a climber was suggested. Keeping the west side of the park as a "passive area" was discussed. Originally, the east side was designated as a playground and the west side for park users who wanted a quiet place to enjoy the park. Some points that came up were...
Do we want the west to remain a quieter, "passive" area?
Is Roseneath Park a suitable site for a large sculpture? We are a community park with mostly repeat users. Will we get bored of a sculpture? Will it be worth the expense? Will it create a hiding area and graffiti canvas, two things we have worked hard to eliminate?
Should the new open, grassy area on the west side be kept as is?
Again, the question of a splash pad came up. Splash pads cost around a quarter of a million dollars. They require city staff to supervise. The size of the park does not make it a good splash pad site. So the splash pad idea was put aside, again.
Do you have any suggestions for the west side of the park?
I suggested a small poetry garden/ labrinth with all natural elements that could be enjoyed as a sculpture/seating area/kaleidoscope garden http://www.toronto.ca/nps/revitalization/greenpodiumroof/kaleidoscope.htm.
To prevent further erosion on the hill, ground cover vegetation would be put down, such as a creeping low plant that will just take over that shady area.
We also talked about grants. We have started the application process for the Weston Parks Challenge and the Live Green Toronto Grant. These focus on "greening" initiatives. To cover the cost of playground improvements, we need to research grants specific to this. If you have any experience in grant writing or know of grants for which we may be a good candidate, please contact me.
Let's have a meeting on Thursday October 17 at 6:30 to do some fall maintenance on our garden and to discuss...
And remember, email me your feedback. It's important!
