The Allan Gardens neighbourhood is known for many things, including drugs and an annual leatherman festival, but three years ago, Councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam decided to add a little something for another neighbourhood demographic.
"The Allan Gardens playground was not scheduled for capital improvements until 2018, and I believed that was too late," she says.
"Considering the dogs in the park had two elaborate off-leash play areas and children next to nothing, only a meagre swing set and a broken see-saw in a dull sand pit, it didn't seem fair to delay the playground investment any longer. Given the number of children and young families moving into the area, I accelerated the Allan Gardens playground renewal process by seven years. Given what I know now about the technical requirements of space and relocation, if we stayed with the original schedule, I imagine that children in the neighbourhood would not have a new playground until 2021."
The contract went to tender an unusual three times, after the budget for the update was tripled to allow for better fences, among other things. The budget stands at $1,160,400.
Wong-Tam says she has been advocating for family-sized development in the area since taking office, and this is a reaction to and preparation for that.
"This means that any development proposed in Ward 27 will have 10 per cent of their unit mix be family-sized, therefore, either three-bedroom units or two-bedrooms and larger at a minimum of 900 square feet," she says. "Given the proposed unit sizes by developers today, 900 square feet by downtown standards is large."
The playground, which will be about 2.5 times the size of the original, should be completed by September.
Writer: Bert Archer
Source: Kristyn Wong-Tam