A couple of things I noticed while biking around downtown Charlottetown with my boys this evening. First, the Pownal Parkade is undergoing a small but important facelift. This parking garage is notoriously dark and dingy, and that is reflected in its generally poor occupancy. But CADC is using lots of white paint and brighter lights to create a more inviting atmosphere. I think the results are good.
A brighter, cleaner Pownal Parkade
Secondly, I was sad to see that Burke’s Gas Bar, operating from the old Irving station at Queen and Euston, has apparently closed shop. This has been for years my usual place to fill up. The pumps are gone and a sign directs customers to other Irving stations around town. I’ve heard this old building variously described around City Hall as a “disgrace”, and as an important heritage building. In fact, I believe it is a designated heritage resource.
Gas pumps gone.
At the November public meeting of council last night I was the lone vote against a Heritage Board resolution approving new tennis courts for Victoria Park. Today, Dave Stewart from the Guardian emailed and asked why I opposed. Here is my reply, some of which you may read verbatim in an upcoming edition of the newspaper:
Last night’s resolution on the tennis courts was a recommendation from Heritage Board (of which I’m a member). This recommendation was required because Victoria Park is now a designated Heritage resource. Heritage Board recommended approval of the tennis courts, but only by a bare majority — the board was almost evenly split. Also, while campaigning throughout my ward last year, and at recent public meetings on this issue, I heard from many residents who were opposed to any further development or construction in Victoria Park. I knew the resolution would pass easily, so I voted against the resolution because a 10-0 vote would not have been representative of public opinion on the matter. There are many divergent views on what Victoria Park should, and should not be and there was certainly opposition to the construction of these new courts.
I always use Point Pleasant Park in Halifax as a good example of what I’d like to see happen at Victoria Park. In 2005, Halifax held an International Design Competition for Point Pleasant Park. It was very comprehensive, with a jury, technical review team, public consultations, etc. The winning design took into consideration the three main components of the park; cultural history, natural history, and recreation. And it stressed the importance of design and long-term planning. The winning submissions from that competition are now being rolled into a larger Master Plan for Point Pleasant Park.
I think there is an appetite for this kind of process for Victoria Park. The recent Parks Master Plan was a high-level plan for all of our parks resources, but I think Victoria Park needs to be treated individually, since it’s our “crown jewel”. It could really be an incredible landmark for the city, but it falls just a bit short currently, in my opinion, mostly because of poor design and planning. Gary Schneider’s forest management plan was a great step forward ecologically, but that needs to be a part of a greater plan.
I have nothing against tennis. I used to be very good at it.
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