2019 Annual Report

Annual Report 2019 25 Yale Road Downtown Greening As part of the City’s greening initiative, five garden beds along Yale Rd. from Spadina Ave. to Kipp Ave. were revamped. The gardens, trees and surrounding brick were removed as they posed tripping hazards. The brick was replaced with a new concrete sidewalk and the garden beds were lowered to sidewalk height. All gardens received a new planter pole, flowers, shrubbery and an ornamental tree. 2019 Reservoir Tank Cleaning In the spring, Operations Department staff completed the draining, cleaning and inspection of four drinking water reservoirs in the Promontory area. The tanks were refilled and returned to service for another three years before the next cleaning cycle. Second Garbage Truck A second, full service, garbage truck was put into operation. It is capable of compacting up to 6.5 cubic yards of refuse and is equipped with a high pressure washdown system to clean out garbage cans and other debris from sidewalks and walkways. This second truck enables crews to increase garbage collection services for parks and trails and can allow for expanded services. PARKS The Landing Playground Expansion ƒ Updates included a large excavation play machine flanked by two operational digging toy features that dig at the sand play surface and spin 360 degrees ƒ A new asphalt “play street” with miniature street signage offers a play surface for children of all abilities on all types of wheeled conveyances New Play Equipment in Parks ƒ Three parks received new play structures: Guinet Park on Fairfield Island, Higginson Park in Sardis and Parker Park in the downtown area Kensington Park ƒ “Parkour” structure installed providing challenges for age group 5-12, while the secondary sand play structure caters to the 2-5 age group ƒ A “play street” was installed for children of all abilities on all types of wheeled conveyance ƒ Sports court provided with pickle ball, basketball, hockey, and other asphalt based games as well as a small picnic area and drinking fountain Kinsmen Park on Portage ƒ Playground relocated to a more central location ƒ “Centre Stage” structure provided with three slides and four ways to climb up and a smaller 2-5 years of age structure with classic spring toys ƒ Three new benches installed in a large, paved guardian area with a historical display. An asphalt “play street” has also been constructed Webster Park Washroom Facilities – “Portland Loo” ƒ A “Portland Loo” washroom facility and new drinking fountain was constructed ƒ This is the first “Portland Loo” that the City has installed and will act as a test facility for future consideration at additional locations around the City