After multiple rounds of public engagement, and several trips back to the literal drawing board, Salt Spring’s Portlock Park has an approved draft plan, one officials say includes both a senior ball field and a large oval track –– and, hopefully, reflects the needs of the community within the physical constraints of the island’s available park land.
“I just want to start with saying I’ve been given a four-seater car and asked to put six people in it,” laughed Salt Spring Island administration acting senior manager Dan Ovington, who brought the plan once again before the Local Community Commission (LCC) Thursday, Aug. 15.
But following months of consultation, the draft master plan has seemingly found support among not only the LCC, who voted unanimously to advance it, but the various stakeholder groups –– from runners to walkers to pickleball players to baseball teams –– who weighed in.
Part of that solution stemmed from an awareness, to continue Ovington’s metaphor, that there were other cars available to drive; approving the master plan for Portlock Park came alongside amending one for the Rainbow Recreation Centre site, specifically removing the planned covered multisport court there and adding six pickleball courts instead.
“Pickleball was very enthusiastic as long as they had six courts,” said Ovington. “It didn’t matter as much to them where they were.”
And, Ovington pointed out, the loss of the covered multisport court will be less impactful given the existence of the Salt Spring Island Multi Space (SIMS).
“When that plan was developed, we didn’t have SIMS, we didn’t have an indoor gym,” he said. “I’d argue we’ve already created an indoor multisport court that accommodates all those users and more –– we have kinder gym, basketball, indoor pickleball; we have badminton, floor hockey, soccer uses. The list goes on and on.”
The approval of a master plan is important, Ovington said, not only because it offers direction but also shows community support that can be demonstrated to potential funding partners.
In addition to the senior ball field and oval track, the draft as approved adds storage and field lighting at Portlock Park.
As for other park properties –– the other “cars” on Salt Spring Island –– Ovington reported islanders would see some work happening this fall at 160 Rainbow Rd., the so-called hydro field, although mostly some levelling of the field and removal of excess material. The field is slated for upgrading for ball field sports.
“There’s a bit of a drastic lift there where we want to put the ball field, so that needs to be brought down,” said Ovington. “And we’re discussing what material we want to use to bring things up; there’s not water irrigation, so sand’s not the best solution, even though there’s a drainage issue there. So it’s a balance.”
Funding is in place for that project, between a $300,000 donation and $50,000 in capital reserve funding allocated –– a “tight” budget for what’s planned, Ovington said, but certainly doable.
“But that’s why we’ve been going somewhat slow,” he said, “to get the most that we can for what we have.”
There had previously been funding set aside for detailed drawings for the field at Fernwood Elementary School, but it was redirected when a private donation came in specifically for the hydro field. Once that project advances, Ovington said, staff plan to revisit detailed designs for the field at Fernwood.