Reminder … The Grantham Town Hall Meeting, with Councillors Bill Phillips and Dawn Dodge, postponed for last week due to the light drizzle, is now scheduled for Cindy Drive Park for Thursday July 26th, beginning at 7:00 PM.  Bring your lawn chair and join in the discussion, hear the latest news from City Hall, ask your questions and make your opinions known. And for those of us who are enthusiastic about the new Library and swimming Pool facility in Pearson Park … congratulate Bill Phillips, who played a significant role in bringing in this project under budget and giving us a wonderful new facility!!

The Town Hall Meeting will be in the same location as the WCNA Star Gazing Night … close by the new Children’s Playground … so access via Parnell, Wilcher or Cindy Drive.

and News… The Naval Reserve Band Concert is a go!! Thursday evening, August 2nd, in Cindy Drive Park at 7:00 PM, the 35 member Band will present an hour long concert. Again, bring your lawn chairs and enjoy music in the Parks. The folks who live in close proximity to Cindy Drive Park are especially welcome so they can see and be part of this event, a first by the WCNA. As parking on the side streets is very limited, folks are encouraged to walk to the Concert, respecting the freedom of movement by nearby residents. And please note there are no washroom facilities in this Park … so come prepared?? The WCNA wishes to thank City Council who has waived the fee for the Park Permit in recognition of the many efforts by the WCNA to have the Parks in good condition and well used.

 

The annual Town Hall Meeting in the Park takes place this coming Thursday evening, July 19,  weather permitting. Cindy Drive Park … off Parnell and Wilcher Drive is the chosen location … the same area as used for the Star Gazing Night. Beginning at 7:00 PM, this is your opportunity to share an informal meeting with Grantham Ward Councillors Bill Phillips and Dawn Dodge, to be made aware of the issues facing City Council, to add your thoughts and opinions and to ask those questions that may have been buuzzing about in the back of your mind.

It’s a “Bring your own Chair’ event  and a fine time to hear what other Grantham Ward residents are thinking. Hope to see you there!!

Other news … 

‘Strolls” in each of the WCNA Parks with members of the City’s Accessibility Committee are underway. It is an education to be made aware of the obstacles and hazards handicapped and mobility challenged folks face in seeking to enjoy the many opportunities the Parks can provide. Whether it be the width and surface  of the pathways causing difficulties for folks using wheelchairs or walkers, , the slopes encountered or the challenge to locate and get to a bench placed some distance from the pathway, sharing this experience with folks who daily deal with situations previously not observed is a needed education. The eventual report, recommendations and list of priorities will be a great asset to the WCNA as we strive to have the Parks accessible and available to be enjoyed by all.

The Naval Reserve Band Concert in the Parks is an activity that continues to be advanced. This 35 member band is preparing to offer an hour long concert on the evening of August 2nd, again in Cindy Drive Park beginning at 7:00 PM. With definitely limited parking on the adjacent streets, please carry your lawn chair and walk to this event, entry via Lakseshore, Parnell or Wilcher Drive will lead you to the site of the concert where the Star Gazing Night is held. . Please be aware there are no bathroom facilities available.  Nearby residents to that area will be receiving a notice in advance of this event so they may plan to attend or make plans to be other than involved while the music is enjoyed.

The slow trickle of water in the Creek is a serious proof of the lack of rain … and certainly many of the trees in the Parks are suffering from this absence of the usual and now much needed moisture. The Creek’s water flow is enough to discourage mosquito development and folks are reminded that keeping containers, birdbaths, or other receptacles in personal yards and gardens devoid of standing water will  seriously help to keep the mosquito numbers down, limiting the threat of West Nile Virus for all.

Good to see the many walkers, joggers, cyclists and dog walkers enjoying the Parks in the early morning and evenings as the heat sure does discourage the normal ‘anytime of day’ Park use. And yes, envy is allowed as one views the many swimming pools in backyards adjacent to the parks!! The playground equipment can get very hot sitting out in the bright sunshine … please check the temperature of the slides and such before encouraging the young ones to enjoy all apparatus.

 

 

Sumer Events … on that the last day of June, a sweltering month mainly, those for whom heat and humidity are not good companions hope for some cool relief while the heat lovers bask in happiness with such a  grand start to a summer. And a busy summer it will be for WCNA Members and Friends … adding to the daily enjoyment  of cycling, dog walking, strolling, bench sitting, enjoying kids and grand kids in the playgrounds, seeing the Creek struggle with an absence of rain or watching it billow after a good soaking, checking out the flowering plants in the Butterfly Gardens and meeting folks for chats, laughs and sharing … the basic components of the Parks to which the WCNA now adds events and programs.

July 4th  … City Accessibility Committee members come to the Parks to walk the pathways, consider the bridges and gather information in order to preapre a report that will contain evaluations of the paths for use by mobility challenged folks. We anticipate learning what needs to be done to improve the pathways, to make them more enjoyable for people using walkers, wheelchairs and power mobilty units. This report and its recommendations will provide the basis for discussions with the City as we plan for the coming years and even more opportunities for all to enjoy the Parks and the variety of experiences they offer.

July 19, 7:00 PM in Cindy Drive Park …  “The Grantham Town Hall Meeting in the Parks” … meet with Councillors Bill Phillips and Dawn Dodge for an informal gathering and conversations regarding City events, plans, intentions, and an opportunity to share views, ask questions and get the latest information on what is happening City wise around us and in our Ward. Bring your comfy lawn chair, some bottled water and enjoy sharing views and opinions with our Ward Councillors who share our concern and affection for the Parks and our Neighbourhoods. (Note: Thursday July 26th at 7:00 PM is the alternate date should rain interfere with the July 19th plan.)

Also in July … the tree tags, purchased with the monies earned in the 2011 WCNA Plant Sale, will be attached to 30 specimen trees throughout the Parks. Permanently attached, these tags identify the species in both English and Latin. And for added fun, each tag will be specifically located by GPS and these locations will be listed, over time, on this website for “your fun find”. All tagged trees are ‘native’ to our area and will help you distinguish between the number of different Maple Trees, find the Cucumber Tree, Tulip trees and more. We plan on adding more tags each year as our budget permits. And there are ideas floating around as to how we can make the WCNA Parks a center of Geocaching activity … ideas welcome!!

The WCNA will hand deliver letters and a Regional information bulletin dealing with alternatives to dumping of grass cuttings and garden detritus in the Parks and by the Creek.  Correcting the misguided belief that such material is a healthy way to fertilize areas is well explained and what to do with the garden materials no longer wanted by property owners, now that the compost collection does not permit grass clipping in curb side pick-up, we hope this information will asssit in explaining and providing solutions that do not adversely affect the Parks and leave the property owners, who do the dumping, open to significant penalties.

Looking forward …

                       >>>>>efforts are underway to have a Naval Reserve Band … 35 members strong … present a free program of music in the Parks in early August. Watch this website for details  as soon as  all arrangements are completed.

>>>>>September 8th is the date selected for the 2012 “Star Gazing Night in the Parks”. This well attended annual event, offered with the much appreciated cooperation of the Niagara Chapter of the Royal Astronomical Society, is planned for Cindy Drive Park on a hopefully nice clear night!!

>>>>> Early November, the WCNA will again host a “Conversation Cafe”. These Community Learning programs, coordinated and offered by Brock University, are opportunities to meet for an hour and half, discuss a chosen topic and enjoy sharing your views with those of other similarly interested folks.

Looking back … 

>>>>> Many thanks to Della and Wayne Trojan and Mike Sullivan who, despite the heat, managed to spread mulch, supplied by the City, around newly planted and some more mature trees, as protection from the big mowing machines and the reduction of weeds and tall grass.

>>>>>  Also many thanks to the ” Mainstream Graffiti Removal Crew” that do such a fine job of removing graffiti from Park equipment and items within the Parks. May the person or persons who defaced  some park benches and the Darby Family Commemorative Plaque, find sleep a problem as  their misbehaviour created an annoying problem for the many interested in enjoying the benches or knowing what that Plaque wishes to convey …

>>>>>> And to  the many folks who supported the WCNA Plant Sale in early June … may your gardens bloom greatly!! Your support has provided the WCNA with close to $500 to be used for future projects in the Parks.

Summer in the Parks … a daily celebration!!