Grassroots group wins in its bid to save Komoka Park
A grassroots campaign in Komoka, a small but rapidly growing community just west of London, has won its battle to save a beloved park and community centre from being paved over.
Middlesex Centre council voted against declaring the Komoka Park land as surplus, which would have opened the door for the proposed development of a private sports rehabilitation facility.
“I’m pleased for being able to keep the building, obviously, but I’m also pleased that council listened to us, and listen to our concerns, and the fact that we want to be able to keep the part of the park that was a stake,” said Paul Miniely, a co-leader of the Save the Park community group, which rallied residents to urge council to keep the park intact.
Strathroy based orthopedic surgeon Dr. Chris Chant had proposed buying the land and developing an athletic rehabilitation centre. The proposal became a hot button issue in the community, and while some councillors entertained the idea, in the end they voted 6-1 against declaring the land surplus.
Paul Houghton, also with the Save the Park group, said the park is far too precious to give up, but he added that he hopes another site can be found for the proposed facility.
“We have preserved the park, we have preserved the community centre, but the bitter part is I really want to find a home for this because it’s going to be a really great asset. And I think what it comes down to is availability of land.”
The lone vote in favour of declaring the land surplus came from deputy mayor John Brennan.
He declined a request for an interview, but in the special virtual meeting Wednesday he said he doesn’t want to lose the opportunity for the facility.
“I don’t think we could ever have enough commercial, industrial business in the community to support the tax base, whether it’s a second, third, fourth medical centre,” Brennan said. “Obviously there’s a need for it, if these people are doing it for, it’s something that’s needed by the people.”
The Komoka park situation has caught the attention of some members of the local development community.
Mike Wallace, the executive director of the London Development Institute is a former municipal and federal politician himself. Speaking in general terms, he said it would be extremely rare for a municipality to divest of park land for private development.
“Park land is basically a sacred cow, it’s not touchable,” he said. “The park land that’s been there for many decades, it’s not something that council can easily turn a blind eye to and then have development happen on that property.”
Middlesex Centre council has pledged to work with Dr. Chant to find a suitable location for the development.
Komoka Park in Middlesex Centre, Ont. on Thursday, May 5, 2022. (Bryan Bicknell/CTV London)
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Honda to get up to $5B in govt help for EV battery, assembly plants
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
BREAKING New York appeals court overturns Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction from landmark #MeToo trial
New York’s highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction, finding the judge at the landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced the ex-movie mogul with improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.
1 arrested in northern Alberta during public shelter order
Residents of John D'Or Prairie, a community on the Little Red River Cree Nation in northern Alberta, were told to take shelter Thursday morning during a police operation.
Secret $70M Lotto Max winners break their silence
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
Monthly earnings rise, payroll employment falls: jobs report
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
First in Canada procedure performed at London, Ont. hospital
A London man has become the first person in Canada to receive a robotic assisted surgery on his spine. Dave Myeh suffered from debilitating, chronic back pain that led to sciatica in his right now and extreme pain in his lower back.
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.