One look at Peterborough’s Bonnerworth Park and it’s hard to not feel that a citizens’ group that fought tooth-and-nail to save its beloved urban greenspace lost that battle.
Long gone are its two ball diamonds, with the park’s grass and trees replaced by mounds of dug-up soil, awaiting the construction of a 14-court pickleball complex, an expanded skate park, a bike pump track, and a parking lot.
But if we’ve learned anything from the resilience and determination of Friends of Bonnerworth Park (formerly Save Bonnerworth Park), it’s that it’s not going silently into the night. Rather, the group has changed its focus, working to have a seat at the table as redevelopment of the park follows its due course.
On Wednesday night (March 5) at St. Peter Catholic Secondary School, Friends of Bonnerworth Park’s directors updated what has transpired since its last briefing in early December.
At that time, it vowed that its fight would continue in some shape or form. As director John Gerelus outlined, oversight — anchored by a more cooperative relationship with the city — is now the approach.
“When we met with our lawyer (SB Law in Guelph) in December, the two questions asked us were ‘What do you want?’ and ‘What do you want to see in the park?'” said Gerelus.
“Initially, we said we wanted to put it (Bonnerworth Park) back to the way it was but, because of the amount of construction that has already started, and because of the resolve of the city, the advice from our lawyer was any chance of litigation that might stop the park (from being redeveloped) would be futile.”
Advised instead to “try to get to the table, try to develop a dialogue with the city,” that is what Friends of Bonnerworth Park has since done.
Following a January 20th meeting request sent to Peterborough CAO Jasbir Raina, Friends of Bonnerworth Park met on January 28 with recreation and park services director Rob McAuley, community services commissioner Sheldon Laidman, and strategic communications and service director Brendan Wedley.
“We termed it as a chat, a cup of coffee … let’s sit down at the table and explain our concerns but, on the advice of our lawyer, also offer solutions,” reported Gerelus.
“We weren’t there to gripe, or bring up history, or (talk) about what happened on November 11th when they broke ground (in the park). It was about moving forward, developing and creating a collaborative environment between citizens and the city. They (city officials) were cautious in the beginning but it was only a couple of day later (from the request) that they were able to schedule a meeting.”
Gerelus says all involved “were cautiously optimistic,” crediting the city trio for “offering information we didn’t expect, adding “We left that meeting with a good feeling.”
Richard Scott, a Friends of Bonnerworth Park director alongside Jen Burnard, Deb Scott, and Gerelus, reviewed particulars of the meeting.
“We wanted additional information over and above what the city has shown on its website which, to this point, has been the landscape plan,” said Scott. “Most of the things that made this park loved by the community have been taken away. There may be opportunities to reclaim some of that.”
Scott said, as a result of the meeting, the group learned the following from the city:
- The neighbouring McDonnel Street Community Centre will remain a public facility, dashing the widely held notion that the Peterborough Pickleball Association would be taking over its occupancy.
- The Peterborough Lawn Bowling Club is in the midst of “nurturing its membership” with the city focused on its viability well into the future.
- The small area of open space provided for in the park’s redevelopment will not be used for additional pickleball courts and will remain as open space.
- If the noise created by pickleball becomes too intrusive, the city will not cover the courts with a dome. Rather, the city is conducting an indoor sports facility study in 2026 but Bonnerworth will not be part of that review.
- Knights of Columbus Park off Park Street will be rebuilt this year with plans to re-open it in the fall.
Scott noted another meeting with the city was held just this past Monday (March 3) involving McAuley and two senior parks operation staff.
During that meeting, Friends of Bonnerworth Park were assured the cast of the pickleball court lights won’t extend beyond the park limits.
“We also had questions around timing, in terms of hours of operation and how that might be adjusted or managed, and who determines the hours of operation,” said Scott.
Noting the city indicated it will approach other park use groups to also sit down at the table, another meeting is tentatively scheduled for late April.
“The key thing for us is monitoring the park’s operation, especially noise,” said Scott. “We’ve highlighted the issues related to pickleball noise and the ineffectiveness of mitigation in countless places across North America.”
“Our group should determine when, how and where noise monitoring is done, and the type of monitoring equipment used. It has to be very specific noise monitoring equipment. The pickleball ‘ping’ is like nanoseconds. You have to be able to capture only that ‘ping’ from other noise.”
According to Scott, another issue raised by the group is the absence of a parking plan for pickleball tournament events.
“Is there overspill parking somewhere? Are there access issues for people (living near the park)? This is the sort of thing we can act as a conduit on — to get word to the city on what’s working and what isn’t, and how we might be able to improve it.”
Scott added the city is planning to hold a public meeting before the newly developed park opens in the fall to review the operation of the park.
“Hopefully the dialogue we’re having with the city will help convince the city and park users to have a reasonable operational plan, and then also provide opportunities to adjust it as necessary,” said Scott.
After the update, which also revealed Friends of Bonnerworth Park has $30,114 in its account — a combination of GoFundMe and other donations minus lawyer and Freedom of Information request fees — and that the group is on the cusp of launching a new and updated website, Gerelus spoke further to the new spirit of cooperation with the city.
That, he said, it a 360 from what transpired last year as the park plan was rolled out.
“We’ve got a real sense that the city is willing to be collaborative and work toward solutions,” Gerelus said, adding “That they want to engage the other stakeholders is important, too, because we need everybody at the table to make that park work.”
“Our resilience has been key to them (the city) wanting to rebuild trust. The fact is the park is being rebuilt, so let’s work together find solutions that will help it be a good neighbour. Let’s work to find solutions around noise, around traffic, around lighting.”
As for the notion that Friends of Bonnerworth Park fought the good fight and lost, Gerelus said nothing could be further from the truth.
“You lose the battle but you win the war,” he said. “It was disappointing when they put shovels in the ground and we weren’t able to file an injunction properly.”
“But people still want to be involved with what goes into the park. Sound advice from our lawyer to try to get back to the table saw us reach out and the city responded in a kind way. They didn’t have to do that, but they want to cure some of the divides in the city right now, and rebuild trust.”
“Now we’re the Friends of Bonnerworth Park. We’re not saving the park. The city is working with us … they want it to be a success. This is huge.”
