Gage Park

[DC83]

Public to get a look at redesign plan of Gage Park's north side

Dana Brown
The Hamilton Spectator
(Feb 4, 2008)

The city will present its plan to redesign to the north side of Gage Park to the public this week.

An open meeting on Wednesday will also include information about the Lower East End Storm Drainage Study, which is examining how to deal with storm water in that end of the city.

The park area slated for development runs from Gage Avenue South, along Main Street East, to near the Hamilton Children's Museum. The section is not a block area and only a tail of land along Main Street comes down near the museum.

Four options were developed after a workshop with stakeholders. They were presented to the public in June 2006.

The Main Street component was consistent among all the options, said Steve Barnhart, a supervisor with the city's the open space development and park planning department.

The city is hoping to establish a main central hub for the park, revamp the pergola at the end of the formal garden and build a brick gateway at the corner of Gage and Main, among other things.

"That style of the brick gateway will set the tone for what we do at the south end of the park off Lawrence," Barnhart said.

"So we'll repeat that theme at the other end, which is also a main entry into the park."

The plan is not to affect the perennial gardens or the fountain.

Barnhart said he hopes the tender for the project will be done in the summer and that the entire development will be done by the time the 2009 winter season hits.

The rest of the plan for the park won't be finalized until a study regarding the central works yard in the park is completed, likely in April. The drainage study will also impact the overall plan.

Similar to the proposed park redevelopment, the drainage study also had the common theme of some sort of wet meadow in all of its options.

The idea is to provide long grass with cut paths that can act as water collector during major storms.

The meeting will be held Wednesday at Adelaide Hoodless Elementary School, 71 Maplewood Ave., from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.