Hey Whyte Ridge and Linden Ridge! I’m writing this during the rainstorm that ended a long hot summer for us all! There are quite a few interesting site development plans to share.
A few weeks ago, Kim and I met with several City representatives and a landscape architect to discuss the plans for the splash pad. Hopefully, some concepts will be developed soon that we can share. If it’s as hot next summer as this year it will be a welcome addition to the site!
Plans are still underway to have the Pembina Active Living (PAL 55+) group move into the Community Centre this fall. Designs have been developed to convert one of the changing rooms to a meeting room, and some of the open space into a small office. As it does tie up more of the limited open space in the building, there have been discussions about expanding the building a little to get some more storage space, maybe a meeting room and perhaps a slightly bigger multipurpose room used for indoor programs.
The new area of tallgrass prairie was seeded this spring, but the hot dry weather has been challenging. Bev Rapinda and gardening volunteers have been working hard on the butterfly garden – I saw her and her family out there almost every weekend over the summer – thanks Bev!
The WRCC Board has developed a site development Wish List, with some short-term and long-term concepts, based on funding. In the short-term, we’re thinking of things like portable basketball hoops for the east hockey pen when the basketball court gets too full, benches for the teams using the soccer fields, a flower garden at the Cloverwood entrance to the site, and more trees, including about 10 (either silver maple or green ash) to fill in the spaces between the elm trees. Longer-term projects could include a small external storage facility, asphalting the pathways and rinks, a community vegetable garden, and a portable (trailer-based) water tank, to water the plants at the north end of the site. The community vegetable garden would likely involve establishing a strip of land (likely along the north of the site) where planting beds would be established (maybe 6’ by 6’) and available to rent if you’d like to plant your own vegetables. Apparently, it’s really caught on in several other communities, but the water tanks would be essential.
We’d really like to get your feedback on these plans, as well as any ideas on how we can make the Community Centre an even better place to meet and have fun next year.
Stay tuned to our web page, Facebook and Instagram page for opportunities to participate!
Nick Barnes,
Site Development director.
