The current and future plans for the Tatagwa Parkway system in Weyburn were outlined by parks coordinator Linda Prokott to the Weyburn Rotary Club on Thursday.
Prokott has been the city’s parks coordinator since 2015, and she explained some of the background of how the parks system developed before laying out the plans for the parks for the coming year.
The parkway was formed in the late 1980s and early 90s, with the establishment of flood control diking system by the City of Weyburn.
Around that time also, CN Rail decommissioned their rail line in the city, which provided the opportunity to the city to develop a trail system in the Signal Hill area, including using the rail bridge over the Souris River, with 180 acres of land adjacent to the river.
Today, the Tatagwa Parkway has about 12 kilometres of trails, with benches and picnic tables scattered throughout the parkway, and thousands of seedlings and trees planted over the years, including many planted by Rotary Club members.
The Riverfront boardwalk was completed in 2014, and a paved trail in the Silver Heights area of the city was finished in 2016. Last year, there was fencing installed along the trail extension, said Prokott.
Outlining some of the project plans for this coming year, Prokott noted that the picnic tables will be replaced with a more durable and accessible table, as the current wooden tables in place are deteriorating. The design of the new tables will allow for people to access them if they are out in the park in wheelchairs, including at the gazebo in River Park, by the spray park, and at the accessible playground at Elks Park.
The plan is also to plant trees by the picnic tables so there will be shade provided for people wanting to use the tables in the park, she said, noting they will be using funds from a donation by the Rotary Club for some of the tree planting.
One large project this year will be redoing the entrance to River Park, said Prokott.
“The rail ties were installed in the early 90s and are deteriorating. We currently have a Request for Proposal posted. We want to tear out the rail ties, do some landscaping and make it really inviting for the public,” said Prokott.
The Parks Department will also begin a long-term program to repave the trails in the Tatagwa Parkway, with the plan to start on some of the trails in the worst condition.
“We’re not able to repave the entire trail, but we will do sections of the trail in the most need,” said Prokott, noting the department will be using some of the reserve funds to help pay for the repaving this year.
Future plans also include paving of the Silver Heights trail extension, replacing benches and picnic tables, and continuing to plant trees by picnic tables.
Prokott noted the Parks Department has a donations program where people can donate to plant a tree in someone’s name, or they make a general donation towards the upkeep and maintenance of the parkway system. She pointed out that the province cut funding to urban parks in 2015, so they are now relying on the public’s support of the parks more than ever before.
Rotary member Alex Miles noted that a former member, Gordon Liddle, playing a huge part in Rotary’s involvement as the club made a $50,000 donation in the formative years, and planted many hundreds of trees in voluntary work bees.
One of the challenges to keeping the paths in good shape is that in some areas there are willow tree roots pushing through and damaging the paths, said Prokott, and they have tried many thing to try and deal with this, but have so far been unsuccessful.
Prokott was presented with a donation of $1,500 by the club, which was part of the proceeds from the Golf Ball Drop, held last fall by the Weyburn and Estevan Rotary Clubs. The fundraiser also donated to the STARS Air Ambulance service.
