Ward 1 Regional Councillor Maurice Brenner co-hosted the Feb 12 Town Hall with Abdul Mir, executive officer of the Rougemount Community and Recreation Association.
The main topic of the presentation of the town hall was Pickering Parks and Recreation which was led by Arnold Mostert, Director of the department.
Arnold Mostert, Abdul Mir, and Councillor Maurice Brenner
Councillor Brenner opened the meeting with a brief explanation about town halls: how they were an opportunity for residents to express concerns and voice their feelings about issues relating to the City of Pickering. Brenner has hosted numerous town halls in various locations in Ward 1 as he feels the opportunity for hearing a broader spectrum of resident concerns is served best this way.
More town halls are scheduled for March and April though specific locations and times are yet to be finalized. One potential topic as a town hall theme being considered for an upcoming meeting is the climate crisis.
The agenda for this current town hall was primarily designated as being about Frenchman’s Bay and Rouge Valley Park, though the focus shifted to the latter once the discussion began.
Rouge Valley Park
The main speaker addressing the topic of Rouge Valley Park was Arnold Mostert, head of the City of Pickering Parks and Recreation Dept.
Mostert covered many aspects of Rouge Valley Park but broadened his presentation to include Pickering Parks in general. He talked about:
- The 25-year-old aging of parks and their equipment
- Surface considerations in the parks
- The renewal and update of the Rouge Vally Park (RVP) scheduled for 2027
the entire playground is scheduled for updating;
Installation of a basketball court will be considered;
the green space vs woodland areas of the RVP need consideration;
the Rougemount Community and Recreation Assoc. (RCRA) are asked for their input;
ice rinks are being considered with discussion relating to the benefits and preference for a natural rink vs an enhanced one. Given the precariousness of the local climate, an enhanced rink with artificial ice is a primary considered but it very high cost is a major deterrent;
a skate trail is also being considered, and again artificial equipment, a necessity here, is a concern;
making RVP a full facility with washrooms, picnic facilities and Zamboni equipment are all up for discussion but costs and financing is an ongoing concern and consideration.
Parks development
Mostert described how park development is a very broad and comprehensive process encompassing many areas of input and consideration:
- Neighbourhood surveys;
- The number of people to be accommodated;
- Determination of types of courts in relation to neighbourhood demands:
basketball, tennis, pickleball; - Sun shading;
- Walking paths;
- Outdoor exercise equipment;
- Parking availability;
- Washroom facilities;
- Picnic needs (tables, trash bins);
- Maintenance needs and costs and
Councillor Brenner laid some of the input responsibility on RCRA requesting they form a subcommittee group to address and discuss these RVP considerations. He further clarified the consideration of community vs neighbourhood park designation; the community label opens to the park to a broader clientele where people from the entire region are invited to the park use whereas neighbourhood designation encourages more limited use to encourage local users to make use of the park.
Regarding increasing park use Brenner called Craig Bamford, executive member from the City’s Committee for Safety and Wellness, to describe his parking hiking program which has been popular in other parks.
Broad discussion
The RVP discussion covered many areas:
- Revenue generation via commercial sponsorship and advertising;
- Vandal-proofing green bins and trash bins;
- Encouraging the public to good housekeeping habits with picnic activity.
Problems and concerns
There was some concern about promotion and public information about the park in general, its accessibility, its parking facilities. Once again much of the onus for these concerns has been shifted to RCRA for promotion and publication. Brenner underscores that the City has offered to subsidize printing costs for publication of printed material but its distribution will be with the association.
Abdul closed the meeting with appreciation and thanks to Brenner for hosting the townhall and underlined that more information is available at the Rougemount Community and Recreation Association website at
A personal concern about the dissemination of information by the City
The information discussed at the town hall is not readily or easily available on the City’s website. The city’s communications system is a challenge to use and navigate. The chaos or confusion is confounded by making numerous phone numbers available to the public. The city’s website seems to change too often. Learning how to navigate it or manage it is not applicable just weeks after using it before. Seniors, maybe even the majority of Pickering residents, do not use the Internet, but if they did or do, this convoluted, chaotic mess of confusion would discourage them from ever returning to it.
