Recreation and Parks Plan

The Township of West Lincoln is developing a Recreation and Parks Plan. This Plan will provide a roadmap to enhance and grow the Township’s parks and recreation facilities and services for residents, user groups, and visitors now and into the future. This Plan will guide decision making across all aspects of parks and recreation, from playgrounds to facilities and everything in between.

The Township retained the consulting firms of McQueen Galloway Associates (MGA) and GSP group to facilitate all phases of this project. MGA and GSP understand communities like West Lincoln and the complexity of balancing community needs and financial sustainability for the Township’s population growth. Key components of the planning process include:

• Evaluating existing parks, open spaces, amenities and recreational facilities for condition, accessibility, design and capacity.
• Identifying future needs for all types of recreational spaces based on growth and trends profiles.
• Identifying gaps and duplication and making recommendations for efficiencies.
• Establishing a bold vision based on the values and aspirations of the community.

Get involved

Community engagement is an essential part of the project. It helps build a common understanding of the issues and empowers residents to have their say in the future of the Township. MGA and the team have developed an extensive community engagement program to ensure we hear from everyone in the community. This will include interviews, focus group sessions, workshops, community meetings, youth engagement and a online community wide survey. The consultants will work with the community to ensure your concerns and ideas are incorporated in the development of the Plan where possible.

Community engagement workshop

Thursday, September 26, 2024, from 6 to 9 p.m.
West Lincoln Public Library - Smithville Branch Program Room
177 West St., Smithville

Public survey

An online survey will be launched in the fall of 2024. Stay tuned for more details.

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Frequently asked questions

Why is this necessary?

The current Parks and Open Space Master Plan was completed in 2010. Since that time, there have been considerable changes to the Township’s parkland assets as a result of the new community centre, new and ongoing development and future development relating to the urban expansion. Now that the Master Community Plan project is nearing completion, it is time to review and update the Township’s Park and Open Space Master Plan, now being referred to as the Recreation and Parks Plan. Once completed, this plan will provide direction for developing, improving and managing the Township’s parks infrastructure and recreation facilities, open spaces and related investments over the next 30 years.

How much is this costing taxpayers?

The Recreation and Parks Plan project is not impacting the tax levvy. The total project budget is $100,000: $70,000 of which is funded through the 2023 Capital and Special Projects Budget and $30,000 of which is funded through Development Charges and the Planning Reserve.

I have great ideas. Who can I talk to about them?

Public consultation is an essential part of this process. We're holding a community engagement workshop at the Smithville Library Branch Program Room, located inside the West Lincoln Community Centre (177 West St., Smithville), on Thursday, September 26, from 6 to 9 p.m. Can't make it to our engagement workshop? No problem! You'll still be able to provide input through an online survey, which will launch in the fall. Stay tuned for more details.

Question?

If you have a question that has not been addressed in the FAQ above, please send it to staff by email.

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