Let’s Save Sylvia Holden Community Park!

Dear Neighbours,

Do you use the wading pool, dog run, baseball diamonds, basketball courts, play structures or open field at the Community Park behind the fire station near Lansdowne Park? If so, you should know that this Community Park (part of Sylvia Holden Park) may be affected by Lansdowne’s redevelopment.

The principles and terms of reference for the Lansdowne urban park design competition call for proposals to integrate the Community Park within the new urban park and the larger civic agenda of Lansdowne Park. From a design perspective, this might make sense and there may be an opportunity to redesign the Community Park. However, if the partnership with OSEG goes ahead, the city will no longer run Lansdowne Park. It will be managed by a Municipal Services Corporation (MSC). Will there be user fees? Will they close off access during large events at Lansdowne? Will it determine the types of activities? Many questions, few clear answers.

We believe it is vital to protect this space as a Community Park (wading pool, play structure, dog park, baseball, basketball, dog park, etc.). One has to ask why the Community Park is being included in the design competition, while more than twenty acres of the site are set aside for commercial development.

If you are concerned, please:

• Write Councillor Peter Hume (peter.hume@ottawa.ca), the City’s project and manager John Smit (john.smit@ottawa.ca); the NCC (marie.lemay@ncc-ccn.ca) and Parks Canada (alan.latourelle@pc.gc.ca). Ask them to leave the Community Park out of the Lansdowne redevelopment. Please copy to the rest of council. (This mail link will include the named people, councillors, and mayor.)
  
• Join your neighbours for an informal get-together at the Community Park on Sunday, March 21st at 4:00pm.
• Attend a public meeting organized by the GCA on Thursday, April 15th at 7:30pm the Glebe Community Centre (Scotton Hall).
• Get involved by sending us an email; include photos showing how you use the park to: save.sylvia.holden.park@gmail.com.
• Stay informed at http://savesylviaholdenpark.blogspot.com/
• Write a letter to the editor of your newspaper!

Adrian Evans
Robert Campbell
Joseph Duggan