The City of Port Colborne is seeking resident input on a redesign of the entrance parkette at H.H. Knoll Lakeview Park as part of a strategy to enhance recreational spaces for residents and attract business investment and tourists to the city.
Located on Sugarloaf Street at Elm Street, H.H. Knoll Lakeview Park overlooks Sugarloaf Harbour and features outdoor picnic areas, pavilions, accessible playground, Discovery Spray Pad, and restrooms. Established in 1922, H.H. Knoll Lakeview Park has undergone various transformations throughout the last few decades with the goal of enhancing the overall visitor experience. Currently the City is looking at completing a redesign of the parkette by Spring 2022 and is looking for resident input.
Last year the mini-putt course and concession building located at the parkette were removed, which has allowed for two food trucks to operate in that location for the 2021 summer season. City staff recognize the opportunity to further enhance the parkette and retained MBTW Group in 2020 to provide four conceptual landscape plans, including renderings and character sketches illustrating design intent. At the July 26, 2021 meeting, City Council asked staff to engage the community to get their input on the concept plans and ideas for this public space.
“City Council recognizes the importance of this project in making this area more attractive to residents and visitors and have asked staff to review all options and seek community feedback,” said Gary Long, Manager of Strategic Initiatives. “By enhancing the entry into H.H. Knoll Lakeview Park, we will improve access to food trucks, provide more shaded seating, and create new park experiences for residents and visitors. We want to maximize the full potential of the parkette while also keeping it functional and flexible.”
Residents are encouraged to complete a short online poll that asks which of the four concept plans they like the best. City staff will collect and review the poll’s results to determine the most preferred concept. This poll is open from Thursday, August 5 at 8:30 a.m. until Friday, August 20 at 11:59 p.m.