The Township of Whitewater Region received the final report of the Westmeath Recreation Task Force and thank the community members for their work and engagement.
Anne Bromley reported on the assessment of the Westmeath amenities and their exploration of the events available to the region.
“The highlights were the community hall” she said. “People like to walk, and the Westmeath park came up.”
“At least 50% of the people came to the arena once a week, moreso in the Hockey season.”
“The lesson we learned is that if we build it, they will come.” she said. “David Ethier made a darts night and we have a dart league.”
“Anyone we can do to support someone with an idea is something fabulous.”
She said that hiring a programmer to organize a program, but that those actions should be done after consulting the Westmeath community members.
“People want to know that we value the area, and they want to know that before anything is decided that there will be a public consultation?”
She also recommended that the unused arena slab be made use of.
“Mothballing that slab is not a good idea.” she said. “There’s something to do with that area.”
Bromley urged the Council needed to consult with the Westmeath Community with major decisions on their area.
“We will need a lot more consulting before we make a decision, and you will need a much thicker skin.” Bromley said. “We feel very strongly about this.”
The Council received heavy criticism over the Westmeath Cenotaph in 2020, where public outcry prompted an emergency meeting to reverse the move, and prompted months of criticisms regarding the lack of transparency.
Bromley said that Westmeath Boat Launch and the arena were important to the community and that they needed to be carefully considered.
“Both the Flood and the Arena have shown us how much discussion is the hub of the community.” she said.
She said that the Westmeath Park was a ‘hidden gem’, and that a new committee called Friends of the Westmeath Park formed to plan uses and events regarding the provincial park.
“There are people that get things done on it.” she said.
“His passion sparked Cheryl Spotswood’s, and it just went from there.”
Reeve Cathy Regier said that she was “impressed with the amount of work that went into this.”
Councillor Chris Olmstead also acknowledged “the big commitment that everyone on this task force had to give.” , saying he attended the first few meetings
“I made a commitment years ago that the arena would close over my dead body.” he said. “There’s a lot of commitment on your behalf.”
“Neil was very careful not to say how big of a job this was going to be.” she said. “
“I think in Westmeath there’s more of a sense of community.” Councillor Mackay said. “In Beachburg it seems to be shattered. There’s no kids stickball anymore. I think we need to improve that.”
Bromley said there were ‘quite a few new families that wanted to help out.”
Councillor Neil Nicholson thanked Anne Bromley and Brenda Grady for their efforts as well, saying that he found the task force “a really good way to engage with the community” and receive feedback.
He asked if there were anything Bromley would have changed in how the Task Force was conducted regarding planning and discussion.
“This was a process that was participated in by elected officials” he said. “Neil was involved in it ,and Chris in the beginning. I think it’s important to understand that this is a collaborative effort. I think it’s important for the staff to be able to come back to the community and get input.”
Mayor Moore thanked them for their input, saying that “this will not sit on a shelf. This won’t be far.”
The motion to receive the report was carried.
