Burlington mayor would like to see more green space along city’s waterfront

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Published February 3, 2022 at 11:49 am

Burlington Mayor Marianne Meed Ward envisions more greenspace along the city’s waterfront in her perfect vision of the future.

Speaking with insauga.com publisher Khaled Iwamura in an exclusive interview broadcast on Instagram, Meed Ward said of the upcoming redevelopment proposal for the Waterfront Hotel land, “We need to get it right.”

A pair of upcoming public meetings, Feb. 15 for the waterfront study and Feb. 22 for the development proposal, will be the public’s first two chances to give their feedback.

That topic led into a larger discussion of the entire waterfront, from the hotel lands to the Skyway bridge, an area called the Regional Burlington Beach Waterfront Park.

“I think we need to see more greenspace,” said Meed Ward of the entire area.

“We have tools in our official plan to take a certain percentage of land for parks. If we were to do that on the west side of the (Waterfront Hotel) development we’d see more of an open, greenspace feel at Lakeshore/Brant.”

Longer term projects that would help unify the entire stretch could include the moving or even burying of the Hydro lines that run along the area.

“Everything we’ve been doing in the area, from lighting to the pavilion to accessibility, is in line with what the Master Plan says. We’re continuing to tick off those boxes.”

But the Hydro lines are perhaps the biggest box yet to be ticked. Neither the city nor region owns the infrastructure, so any movement will involve negotiations about what can be done and who will pay for it.

“It’s a work in progress,” said the mayor.

Although it would be the more expensive option, Meed Ward said there is support to bite the bullet now and just bury the lines, which would provide the best outcome.

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