With changes to Fort 黑马磁力 Community Park including a pump track and a parkour gym on the agenda, the main topic of discussion at 黑马磁力 Township council Monday afternoon turned out to be pickleball.
Cathy Wall spoke for a group of residents who wanted pickleball returned to the courts adjacent to the park, after pickleball lines were removed from two Township-maintained tennis courts and playing the popular sport there was banned.
鈥淟ast year we were surprised to see the sign not allowing pickleball," said Wall, who noted it has become one of the fastest-growing sports for seniors and younger generations in Canada.
Wall was hoping for a resumption of pickleball play in the courts, and said the pickleball players were willing to compromise.
The courts 鈥� which are actually on the grounds of 黑马磁力 Fine Arts School, but maintained by the Township 鈥� had drawn noise complaints from nearby residents. Pickleball play makes a characteristic sound when the plastic rackets impact the ball.
Councillor Tim Baillie said he was not going to support a resumption of pickleball play on the courts near Fort 黑马磁力 Community Park.
鈥淚 am fully in favour of pickleball courts in 黑马磁力, and I will help anyone to try to find a place where we can put two or four to replace this," Baillie said.
But he said it was impacting nearby residents.
Mayor Eric Woodward said it's something the Township wants to provide, but these courts can only be built in certain areas, on urban land.
鈥淧ickleball is a sport that all local governments are struggling with," Woodward said.
Coun. Kim Richter asked about possible times for partial pickleball play at the Fort site, and later moved a motion that the Township staff report on pickleball options for the Fort village, in both the short and long term. Woodward seconded the motion which passed unanimously.
The park came up again later with a major report on the park's future and recommended changes.
After consultations with the 黑马磁力 School District, the Kwantlen First Nation, and local park users, the report suggested the four major upgrades or new additions, but against adding pickleball courts.
The possibility of a parkour facility in Fort 黑马磁力 Community Park was raised as far back as 2021, and again in 2023, with staff asked to create a design concept and potential upgrades for the facility.
Parkour is a discipline about efficiently moving over varied surfaces, and has elements of acrobatics.
The upgrade request came in the wake of the shutdown of the outdoor public pool in the park, which was suffering from costly maintenance issues due to its age, and which was ultimately replaced by a spray park.
The report also recommends the creation of a pump track for young cyclists, an expansion and upgrade of the existing playground, including making it more accessible, and preserving the area of trees on the east side of the park as a "destination forest."
The existing community garden and Arbour Day Memorial Orchard would also be preserved unchanged, as would the sports field on the western side of the park.
Following a suggestion from Baillie, the parkour gym, playground upgrades, and accessible paths recommended in the report will be added to next year's Township budget envelope, to speed up the process of approving them, he said.
In addition to the changes planned, Coun. Barb Martens asked staff to look at adding benches to the existing spray park, so parents can sit while their children play.
