Those protesting the planned $4.4 million redevelopment of Peterborough’s Bonnerworth Park are hopeful that divine intervention will help them in their effort.
On Saturday (May 18) at 1 p.m., a rally organized by retired priest Father Leo Coughlin will be held at the central Peterborough park, where city council has approved 16 pickleball courts, an expanded skate park, a bike pump track, and an 80-vehicle parking lot scheduled for construction in 2025.
A resident of the Marycrest at Inglewood seniors’ complex on Monaghan Road directly across from the park, Father Coughlin’s involvement comes as a concerted effort by the park’s neighbouring residents to see the redevelopment halted continues.
Organized as Save Bonnerworth Park, their concerns number three: the noise impact that the pickleball complex will have on their quality of life, the loss of their neighbourhood greenspace, and what they claim was a flawed process in terms of notification that the park was being considered for redevelopment and what the scope of the plan was.
As of Friday (May 17), an online petition that can be accessed at savebonnerworthpark.ptbo.org had garnered more than 3,500 signatures. The vast majority of signees are from across the city.
Just this past Monday during a Peterborough city council general committee meeting, Town Ward councillor Joy Lachica put forward a motion that council be granted final approval authority for the redevelopment plan.
Her motion read “The redevelopment project for Bonnerworth Park has generated significant concern over the loss of greenspace, its impacts on current park users, and its compatibility with surrounding residential neighbourhoods,” adding “the city has acknowledged that the public engagement process for the redevelopment of Bonnerworth Park could have been improved and been more inclusive of park neighbours.”
However, her motion was shut down by committee chair Andrew Beamer, who ruled it out of order. That was supported by a 6-5 vote. Mayor Jeff Leal and councillors Beamer, Gary Baldwin, Don Vassiliadis, Kevin Duguay, and Lesley Parnell voted in favour of the chair’s ruling, while councillors Lachica, Alex Bierk, Keith Riel, Dave Haacke, and Matt Crowley voted against it.
Despite the denial to pause the park’s redevelopment plan for another council discussion and ultimately a re-vote, Father Coughlin is optimistic that the rally can and will make a difference.
“The focus here is to bring forward, again, that there is energy and motion to stop this thing from happening,” he says. “I know everybody’s saying it’s a done deal. It doesn’t have to be a done deal. The voice of the power of the people should be able to stop this thing.”
“Look at the green belt and (Ontario Premier Doug) Ford. He was going to allow development there and the people’s voices stopped it. Now, I know it’s not the same thing, but it’s somewhat similar.”
Particularly troubling for Father Coughlin is the impact the pending pickleball complex is having on Marycrest at Inglewood residents.
“Every one of them has made their contribution to this city,” he says. “They’ve worked here and they’ve raised families here. Their families are still here. They’ve paid their taxes and they’ve volunteered.”
“Now they’re seniors. There’s both fear and anxiety over the noise (from the pickleball complex) that will disturb their final years. The level of disrespect is tremendous.”
The bottom line, says Father Coughlin, is “the common good is not being served.”
“This park has been available to, and welcomed, everybody. Now it’s going to be an exclusive park, excluding people unless you’re a pickleball player. The park has moved from inclusion to exclusion. Anybody should be able to see that’s wrong.”
Father Coughlin says a friend of his, who is a professional videographer, will video Saturday’s rally as well as interview some of the participants. The video will be subsequently posted online, shared with local media outlets, and emailed to each member of city council.
