A pristine piece of donated waterfront land is set to become new community parkland in Port Severn.
Severn Township resident Reginald George Bush left a 0.34-acre property at 3253 Port Severn Rd. to the township when he died, a move the township said reflects his “commitment to the community” and his hope for it to benefit and provide enjoyment for the public.
The property includes a two-storey residential structure constructed in 2010, a garage, docks, and water frontage on Little Lake. The township carried out a feasibility study in partnership with Lakehead University to investigate the property’s potential for community use earlier this year.
Public consultation was carried out as part of the study, including an online and mailed survey, which yielded support for using the land as an art studio or gallery space, a gymnasium/workout space, live music venue, or passive space/parkland.
The public expressed support for the following in the survey:
- 75 responses in support of recreational use
- 49 responses in support of arts/cultural centre
- 30 responses in support of mixed/community use
- 14 responses in support of parkland/open space
- 7 responses in support of a gym/fitness facilities
Several respondents gave neutral responses, with a few also raising concerns about taxpayer costs for developing the property.
Although several options ranked higher than parkland/open space for the property, the township website states it was the “most frequently preferred option” and will be the focus of future studies that will “exclude other options.”
When asked by OrilliaMatters, township staff said a weighted system was used to determine uses for the property, with respondents ranking nine presented options, leading to small discrepancies in responses changing their overall rankings.
“Very small differences appear to have a large impact on the overall ranking, although the difference between the first five uses … are quite small and represent minimal variances,” said Tracy Roxborough, the township’s communications officer.
Aside from ranking potential uses for the property, the survey also included open-ended questions for residents to share their thoughts, which was “crucial for understanding nuances of community sentiment that cannot be captured through closed-ended questions,” Roxborough said.
Roxborough said the responses also highlighted concerns about parking and traffic on the property.
“Many of these responses identified concerns related to local infrastructure, such as parking and traffic, as there is no additional property at this time that could accommodate any vehicles that would access the property,” she said.
“In addition, survey responses and qualitative responses highlighted the need for an inclusive and accessible space that would welcome all visitors and members of the community.”
The township’s culture and recreation advisory committee ultimately recommended that council proceed with passive space/parkland on the property, with concerns raised about construction and renovation costs, safety and accessibility, and demand for facilities or venues on the property, Roxborough said.
Roxborough said township staff plan to allocate design funding for council’s consideration during the 2025 budget process, with planning and design anticipated during the first half of 2025.
“Once the draft design (is) complete, the township will release the concept design for public comment and input, which is anticipated to lead to a final report to council for approval for the project,” Roxborough said.
“It is expected that such items as public washrooms, picnic space and shelters, parking, heritage interpretation, public art, accessibility, and non-motorized docking will be explored as part of the design process.”
