The City of Colwood has approved the two latest park management plans, set to guide future improvements at Havenwood and Latoria Creek parks for the next decade.
Council approved the two plans at their regular meeting May 8, following a series of public input opportunities, and the approval of several other park plans.
Each plan is designed to provide high-level guidance to the city on how best to manage and improve the parks over the next 10 years. They are intended to be living documents, evolving as needed.
They provide a list of recommended changes for each park, which will be phased in based on community priorities, budget flexibility, and any opportunities which could arise as part of development in the city.
For Havenwood Park, recommendations include improving the park’s trail network, connections, parking, and wayfinding signage, protecting and restoring bedrock outcrops, riparian, forest, and meadow areas, adding seating areas and a public washroom, and designating on-leash dog requirements throughout the park, rather than only in certain areas as was recommended in the draft plan.
Trail improvement recommendations tie into the sensitive environment protection recommendations and include adding boardwalks or footbridges in the riparian areas prone to flooding, closing some existing informal trails while incorporating others into the official trail network, and adding new trails to better connect the park to the surrounding neighbourhoods.
Latoria Creek Park recommendations are broadly similar to those in the Havenwood plan.
Trail improvements there focus more on improving park entrances, connections, and trail accessibility where possible due to the geography of the park.
An additional recommendation for Latoria Creek Park is to support park stewardship and programming through continuing existing collaboration with neighbours and forming a stewardship group based on the success of the Friends of Havenwood Park.
Both plans feature recommendations for fire risk assessments to be conducted for the parks.
As with all of the city’s parks management plans, the newly approved plans are intended to be reviewed annually to set priorities for the recommendations and reflect changing desires in the community.
The next plans to be developed include those for Herm Williams Park, Outlook Park, Meadow Park, and Lagoon West Park.