Public Meeting #2 - Vaughan Documents/EPP Public Consultati… · Public Meeting #2 Wednesday,...

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VMC Edgeley Pond + Park Public Meeting #2 Wednesday, April 26, 2017, 6:00 – 8:00 pm Expo City, Second Floor Party Room 2900 Highway 7, Vaughan

MEETING SUMMARY On Wednesday, April 26th, 2017, the City of Vaughan held the second of three public meetings for Edgeley Pond and Park at the Expo City condominium party room. About 15 people participated in the second public meeting, in addition to 10 City staff and the consultant team.

The purpose of the meeting was to present and seek feedback on the three conceptual designs for Edgeley Pond and Park developed as the result of ongoing technical work and the phase I public and stakeholder consultation.

The meeting was held in an open house format. It had a plenary question and answer (Q&A) period and a series of one-on-one or small group conversations. Members of the Project Team walked participants through 16 display boards that provided information about the project, the 3 conceptual designs, and the next steps in the process.

This meeting summary was written by Yulia Pak of Swerhun Facilitation & Decision Support. It is based on the feedback shared by participants during and 1 week after the meeting. It is structured to reflect the following four key areas of the discussion: 1. Feedback Highlights; 2. Questions of Clarification; 3. Detailed Feedback:

General Feedback;

Concept-specific Feedback. 4. Summary of Written Feedback (provided after the meeting); and 5. Next Steps.

Please note that the meeting agenda is attached as Appendix A and detailed written feedback provided after the meeting as Appendix B.

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I. FEEDBACK HIGHLIGHTS

The following points capture the highlights of the feedback received at the meeting. They are intended to be read with the rest of the report.

Informative Boards. In general, participants said that the display boards were informative and the meeting was useful.

Popular design elements. Many participants indicated their support for the skating loop, the amphitheater, and the community gardens. Participants emphasized that many seniors move to the condominiums and give up their backyards, as such having community garden is a good idea.

Key Discussion Topics. Participants discussed and provided advice about parking, maintenance, safety, ecology, and accessibility. They further provided design suggestions for the Project Team to consider.

Other. Proposals for a dog off-leash area and adult exercise equipment received a mixed response. Some participants suggested to have a dedicated fenced area for dogs away from active use areas; and others thought dogs should not be allowed in the adjacent buildings and the park. Similarly, some participants really liked the idea of adult exercise equipment and some questioned its value in the park.

II. QUESTIONS OF CLARIFICATION

The meeting kicked off with the Q&A period in a plenary session. The responses from the Project Team are noted in italics.

What are you planning in terms of the stormwater management? We are looking at tanks, treatment trains (LID), oil grit separators and forebays. All options, or a combination, would provide the needed stormwater management.

Has the funding been approved for this project? Yes, the funding for Phase I of this project, which includes the construction of the park and stormwater management of the pond, is approved. We spent about 1.5 years to develop a funding strategy for this project and the work that’s happening south of Highway 7 along Black Creek. The funding is generated through the development charges and storm rate.

What are you planning in terms of parking? There will be lay-by parking on the adjacent streets both west and east of the park. The City is also exploring opportunities for public-private partnerships with local developers to provide more parking. The City is also undergoing a VMC parking strategy.

How much of the island would be impacted by the construction on the site? We are preserving the island and most of the vegetation will remain.

Are there any ducks, fowls, bats or other birds on the pond? We are in the middle of the ecological report. The results will be available as soon as the report is done.

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III. DETAILED FEEDBACK

After the Q&A period, participants had an opportunity to look at the presentation boards, ask members of the Project Team questions, and share their thoughts on the three proposed concepts. In addition to sharing their feedback verbally, participants used green dots on the display boards to identify things that they liked and yellow dots to identify areas of concern and/or improvement. General Feedback captures general advice shared by participants in their conversations with members of the Project Team. Concept-specific Feedback captures feedback from the display boards using dots.

General Feedback

Ecology. Keep natural shapes and ecological spaces, such as ponds, existing water features, etc. as intact as possible with the understanding that upgrades are needed for Stormwater management.

Surrounding land uses. Consider integrating all surrounding land uses around the site into the preferred design map for more detailed context.

Pathways and trails. Ensure that the pathways and trails do not get washed away when it floods and the level of water rises. Consider building pathways on the upper levels on top of the bank.

Seating. Ensure there is plenty of seating along the trails in the park.

Parking. Ensure there is enough public parking for everyone to enjoy the park.

Maintenance. Ensure that the pond and the park are properly maintained year-round.

Accessibility. Ensure that the park is fully accessible for people of all ages and abilities.

Safety. Keep facilities close to the street to ensure “eyes on the building” for safety. Consider locking the washroom at night. Ensure that the trails and pathways are properly lit up at night and are safe to walk at any time of the day.

Cycling. Provide more details about the cycling strategy for the park. Ensure that there is no conflict among park users. Some participants were concerned that older park visitors might get hit by bikes while walking the trails.

Pavilion. Ensure that the location of the pavilion on the east side of the park is not too close to the residential buildings.

Horticultural focus. Consider partnering up with horticultural societies, such as Master Gardiners, to create flower beds in the park, similar to rose gardens in Central Park.

Entrance signage. Consider a signage for Edgeley Pond and Park at Jane and Highway 7 that includes the name of the site, municipal address and the total acreage. Consider a digital sign that shows temperature, wind speed and “feels like” temperature.

Tunnel to the subway. Consider building a tunnel to the subway.

Silent spaces. Consider creating a silent section of the park for people to reflect and rest. Consider prohibiting any use of technology.

Culvert under the northern pond. Check the pipe under the smaller northern pond. It seems that the culvert is always full of water that must be coming from the west side of Jane Street. So in the event of storm, the water is going to flood the buildings around the pond and Jane Street.

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Concept-specific Feedback

CONCEPT 1 – SCULPTED LANDFORMS

Participants used green dots to indicate what they liked about the concept. The identified elements include:

Pathways and circulation (better than Concept 2);

Two open water bodies;

Open water body in the north-west corner of the park;

Community garden plots;

Outlook plaza with movable furniture;

Potential for a dog off-leash area;

All season washrooms and community room;

Senior and Junior spaces; and

Integrated shade structure with washroom.

Participants used yellow dots to indicate the following areas of concern and improvement:

The benefit of adult exercise equipment is unclear.

Consider having paths at the upper level at the top of the bank to prevent paths from being washed away by floods.

Ensure there is a place for quiet zone and/or horticultural focus.

Community room facility (no comment was provided).

CONCEPT 2 – TERRACED LANDFORMS


Flexible lawn space at the south edge of the park is good for yoga and tai-chi;

Good placement of washrooms near the active use area;

Flexible lawn space at the north-east edge of the park for potential dog off-leash area;

Existing forested island with most vegetation to remain;

Adult exercise equipment;

Transitional storm water management (SWM) feature in plaza;

Senior and Junior place space;

Integrated amphitheater seats/steps; and

Two integrated SWM treatment features.


Mitigate any potential security concerns around the use of all season washrooms and a community room at night.

Ensure good visibility into the park from Jane Street for park user safety.

The pathway structure has too many short turns.

The terraced concept is too structural.

Ensure there is no filling of the pond.

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CONCEPT 3 – CLUSTERS OF BASINS AND ECOLOGY


Minor pedestrian bridge;

Skating rink circuit;

Two open water bodies, in particular keeping the water body as natural as possible;

Transitional SWM feature in plaza;

Accessible pathways/loops;

Primary east-west pedestrian and cycling bridge – good connectivity;

Community garden plots;

Potential for dogs off-leash area;

Senior and junior play spaces; and

Splash pad.


Consider adding a pathway from Applemill Road that connects to the main loop in the centre and the path from the main loop to the south-west corner of the park.

Consider the flexible lawn open space at the north edge of the park for a horticultural focus.

The benefit of adult exercise equipment is unclear.

The circulation seems to be okay but there is a concern that it will create blind spots. IV. SUMMARY OF WRITTEN FEEDBACK

The following is a summary of written feedback provided after the meeting. The detailed feedback is attached as Appendix B. The summary outlines main themes that are not captured above.

Consider offering a course for people to take and pass before using the adult exercise equipment to prevent injuries. Ensure there is enough space in between the exercise equipment to give people some private to exercise. Consider creating levels of intensity in using exercise equipment – beginner, intermediate, and advanced. Consider information on the 7 core exercises, particularly the ones for lower back.

Consider installing a water fountain that displays how many bottles of water have been filled and the temperature of the water (cool vs. room temperature).

Consider free public lawn bowling funded by private money or raised taxes.

V. NEXT STEPS

Yulia Pak, an independent facilitator, thanked attendees for their participation and reminded participants to submit their written feedback within a week of the meeting and/or fill out the online survey that would be open until Friday, May 12th, 2017.

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Appendix A. Meeting Agenda and Worksheet

VMC Edgeley Pond + Park Public Meeting #2 Wednesday, April 26, 2017 Expo City, Second Floor Party room, 2900 Highway 7 6:00 – 8:00 pm

PROPOSED AGENDA

The purpose of the meeting is to review and discuss 3 preliminary design options for Edgeley Pond and Park.

6:00 pm Welcome

Andrew Pearce, City of Vaughan 6:05 Introductions & Agenda Review Yulia Pak, Swerhun Facilitation 6:15 Overview of Proposed Conceptual Designs

James Roche, DTAH & Abe Khademi, WSP

Concept 1 – Sculpted Landforms Concept 2 – Terraced Landforms Concept 3 – Basins and Clusters of Ecology

Questions of Clarification

6:45 Discussion

1. What do you like about the presented concepts? 2. Do you see anything in these concepts that presents a challenge and/or is missing? 3. Do you have any ideas to address the challenges? 4. What other activities would you like to see happening in the park?

Do you have any other advice for the project team?

7:45 Wrap Up and Next Steps 8:00 pm Adjourn

If you have more comments, suggestions and/or advice you would like to share with the project team, please e-mail them to Yulia Pak at [email protected]. The deadline to submit written feedback is Wednesday May 3, 2017.

mailto:[email protected]

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Concept 1

Sculpted Landforms

Concept 2

Terraced Landforms

Concept 3

Basins and Clusters of Ecology

What do

you like?

(green dot)

Any

challenges /

anything

missing?

(yellow dot)

Ideas to

address

challenges

What other activities would you like to see happening in the park?

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Appendix B. Detailed Written Feedback Submitted After the Meeting One participant submitted the following detailed feedback after the meeting.

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