Friends of Bonnerworth Park, a citizen group fighting the City of Peterborough’s $4.4-million redevelopment of the greenspace off Monaghan Road at McDonnel Street, has suffered two major setbacks in its efforts to stop the project from proceeding.
The group has learned that the legal firm it had hired, Kraemer LLP of Kitchener, is withdrawing from the case, and that its notice of an application for a stop-work injunction will not be heard by the Superior Court of Justice on November 25.
Meanwhile, the City of Peterborough has continued full steam ahead with construction work at the park, which began on November 5. The city subsequently closed the park to the public on November 7 for the duration of project that, as approved by city council, will see 14 pickleball courts, an expanded skate park, and bike pump track installed.
That was the same day, according to a media release issued on Wednesday (November 13) by Friends of Bonnerworth Park spokesperson John Gerelus, that the group learned its legal counsel was withdrawing from the case.
“On November 7, the Friends of Bonnerworth Park received the shocking news that our lawyer must withdraw from the case because of ill health and is closing the firm,” Gerelus writes.
Four days later, Friends of Bonnerworth Park also found out the November 25th hearing date for the stop-work injunction was not going ahead.
“On Monday, November 11, the city’s outside counsel informed our departing counsel that a clerical error was made by those that scheduled the hearing for November 25, and that most civil matters are to be heard in the spring of 2025.”
In a media release also issued on Wednesday, the City of Peterborough confirmed “There is no injunction against the project and there is no scheduled court date.”
“Reports that the application by Friends of Bonnerworth Park will be heard by the Superior Court of Justice on November 25, 2024 are incorrect,” the release states. “The city has been informed that the applicant’s current law firm, Kraemer LLP, does not intend to handle the injunction application going forward and that Friends of Bonnerworth Park plans to retain new legal counsel.”
According to Gerelus, Friends of Bonnerworth Park is indeed “currently in discussions with another legal firm and examining options, including filing an emergency motion/application for an early hearing date.”
As for the City of Peterborough, it intends to fight any stop-work injunction application in court.
In a closed session on Tuesday afternoon, prior to a public meeting on the draft 2025 budget, city council met as general committee to discuss the stop-work injunction application.
According to the city’s media release, city council approved direction “to authorize the city to respond to the injunction application in the Superior Court of Justice.”
Gerelus said Friends of Bonnerworth Park was advised the following day by the city’s legal counsel “that the city has rejected our request for a stay in construction at Bonnerworth Park, and that it will defend its actions in court.”
Prior to these setbacks, it appeared Friends of Bonnerworth Park had some momentum in its fight against city hall.
The group raised more than $43,000 through a GoFundMe appeal for donations to cover legal costs associated with the injunction filing and the subsequent hearing and, on November 7, had served the City of Peterborough with a notice of application for an injunction.
With files from Paul Rellinger.
