Clive village council heard reports on splash and dog walking parks, both of which come with substantial price tags. The reports were discussed at the Mon. Dec. 12 regular meeting of council.
Village Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) Carla Kenney presented councillors with the results of her investigations into children’s splash parks and dog recreation parks.
Mayor Lucy Henry noted that surveys of Clive residents show a kid’s splash park is one of the top amenities residents are interested in.
A graphic provided by Vortex Engineering labelled as the “smallest” option lists a base price of $128,200 for the park, another $125,000 for an optional water circulating system and just over $20,000 in average maintenance costs.
Councillors discussed the water circulating system and how much money it could save; Kenney answered she wasn’t sure but it might save half the water costs.
Mayor Henry added that councillors should remember that once a park like this is built it will still require future expenses such as upkeep and repair.
The CAO noted larger parks obviously go up in base price. She also added that an outdoor splash park in Alberta is only usable for a few months of the year and it was mentioned that with Clive soon to officially join the Hwy. 12/21 Water Commission water will be billed by usage.
Councillors accepted the kid’s splash park report for information.
Mayor Henry stated this might be a good project for a local community group to take on and mentioned it was nice to have this report on file if anybody in the public wants to see it.
Dog park
Councillors also examined a report prepared by village staff on how a dog park could be developed in Clive; Mayor Henry noted this amenity is also often listed as one of Clive residents’ most wanted developments.
Kenney stated her investigation suggested Clive had two options, one would be to convert the existing Queens Park and the other would be to purchase a new piece of land for dogs and their owners to enjoy.
A graphic provided by the CAO showed the breakdown of converting Queens Park to a canine facility and, including chain link fencing, miscellaneous equipment such as garbage cans and a parking lot, the final price tag would be $70,999, plus annual maintenance costs of $3,000.
The CAO noted one advantage of this approach is that the village already owns this land.
Kenney also provided a graphic breaking down the costs of a dog park located on newly purchased land, with the final price tag of that proposal at $104,500 plus the same annual upkeep.
During discussion Kenney noted two pieces of land that would be suitable for the dog park would be beside the existing skate park or the other side of the soccer field.
Both of Kenney’s graphics showed a separate area for small dogs; during discussion it was stated the larger canines usually need to be separated from the smaller ones.
She also pointed out dog parks require regular upkeep and maintenance as canines can be hard on the grass.
Mayor Henry stated now that councillors have a report on hand they might think about this for the 2024 budget if they wish.
Councillors accepted the dog park report as information.
Stu Salkeld
Local Journalism Initiative reporter
ECA Review
