The Mayor of Monmouth: February 2014

Walkerville residents are concerned and worried about the City's plan to lay asphalt over more than an acre and a half of Willistead Park without any neighbourhood involvement or discussion. The plan to do so centers around adding more events to the park and facilitating loading and unloading for Art in the Park vendors. Twelve foot wide paved paths will mimic the exact vendor booth route as detailed in the Rotary Clubs vendor application form. The plan is being spearheaded by Stephen Marshall, Chair of the Willistead Board of Directors, John Micelli, head of the Parks Department and member of the Willistead Board of Directors, and Phil Cohen, Chairman of Art in the Park and member of the Rotary Club. None of these plans were known to the general public until late October of 2013 when surprised park goers with the help of Ward 4 Councillor Alan Halberstadt managed to temporarily halt an army of heavy tractors and dump trucks from further ripping up Willistead Park. Since then, Windsor City Council has deferred the issue to the Heritage Committee who in January of this year more or less rubber stamped Willistead's original plans under the steerage of Windsor's Heritage Planner John Calhoun (he had previously rubber stamped the plan anyway), John Micelli and Councillor Fulvio Valentinis who is also a member of the Heritage Committee and who is rumoured to be planning a run for Ward 4's Council seat in this year's coming municipal election. The Heritage Committee will be presenting City Council with their recommendation later this month. Last week the Rotary Club's annual check in the amount of $25,000.00 was presented to Mayor Francis at a special event held at Willistead Manor. It is important to note that the Rotary Club is a client of the Willistead Board. The Rotary Club is on contract with the City of Windsor to organize and run Art in the Park in exchange for a percentage of generated revenue from the event.

Area residents and park goers alike are certain that this plan is a mistake and that it will ruin the park for all of Windsor's citizens and tourists alike. They insist that Willistead Park which measures only one kilometer around its periphery is too small for the city's planned eight extra paved road runs. "Pavement will bury the beauty, serenity and history of the park and it really is in violation of the parks historical intent. Every perfect view of green grass, magnificent trees and colourful flowers will be cut up by repeating bands of pavement" say's Sara Venney who resides on Monmouth Road. Others are concerned about heat that will be generated by the asphalt and about graffiti which is already a growing nuisance in Old Walkerville.

Local residents do love Art in the Park. They literally clean their streets and alleys a week or so in advance to show off their neighbourhood. Walkerville residents went as far as swarming the park with lawnmowers and leaf bags to save Art in the park from being cancelled during the year of the City Strike. People don't even mind losing their parking spaces to the thousands of annual Art in the Park patrons or putting up with hundreds of city buses winding through their streets during this annual two day affair. Windsorites know that Old Walkerville is a special place and that it's anchor is Willistead Park. '"Why mess with such a great formula and brand" is the local sentiment. Indeed. Making it like any other park does not speak to any logic. Some say that Walkerville's hosting of Art in the Park is like having a neighbourhood celebration every year where everybody is welcome. It's something unique and special to Old Walkerville. There is also weighty caution that outfitting the park for additional events for the sake of generating more revenue is not good for Art in the Park, Old Walkerville or Windsor. People are concerned that it will cheapen the events and turn the park into the likes of a permanent swap meet. The park, Walkerville, Windsor and the region at large will lose a significant cultural edge. Many Windsorites believe that Art in the Park is the event that it is because of the natural green back drop that Willistead Park provides. "Pave it and they will come" is unfounded and wrong headed. It will not attract more patrons or vendors and it is doubtful that it will ever be the icing that attracts new events. Adding extra pavement is certainly not worth it's price tag of $400,000.00 ($100,000.00 shy of the City's entire allocated pot-hole repair budget). That money could be better spent elsewhere like the continued renovation and upkeep of the manor house and all of it's outbuildings. It could be used to add even more drainage tiles and catch basins and for extra top soil to fill in the central depression in the park (many have commented that this is all that was ever needed to re mediate the parks occasional flooding. Some of that money could be allocated for things like better security. For more trees.

Area residents are quite content with the current layout of the park and its paths yet they are not afraid to offer suggestions for meaningful and practical improvement. Currently the park is serviced by four main paths that cover the park from north to south, from east to west, from the Niagra Street main entrance to the side entrance on Devonshire Road and to the Children's play set. Another acre of the park is already paved for vehicular entrance into the park and for parking around Willistead Manor and its coach house. Every area of the park can be seen and serviced from these centrally located paths. All existing garbage receptacles reside along these current paths and their maintenance will be made easier as well. Adding eight twelve foot wide paths will only add to regular maintenance costs. All current paths are 54 inches wide or wider in order to satisfy today's accessibility standards. Although there have been no accessibility issues to date, area residents suggest that the existing paths be widened to 72". This will also allow for club cars and small vehicles to marshal vendor goods and equipment along the entire length and width of the park. As it is, the majority of these vendors are transporting everything with wagons and hand carts so this suggestion will give them another option. Simple grass also allows for more flexibility in vendor placement and will even accommodate more vendors because the route will never be locked in place by the proposed, permanent vendor roads. The nub of this plan is to make the park even better than it is. Keeping the existing paths but almost doubling their width makes the park enjoyable for all Windsor residents and guests. It maintains the natural green state of the park while at the same time making the park easier to service. Its a win, win plan.

So far, the Willistead Board has refused to look at this plan or to allow any stakeholder input. Park goers and area residents are naturally anxious for Windsor City Council to see the merit, the dollar savings and the long term advantage of leaving this one of a kind historic property in tact.

Here are some pictures of Willistead Park as it exist now. Pictures are borrowed from the "Save Willistead Park" and "Willistead Photo Pages on facebook: