Victoria Park Neighbourhood Association

VICTORIA PARK WORKING GROUP MEETING
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
3:00 to 4:30 p.m.
Kitchener City Hall (Adam Seymour Room – 5th floor)

Present: Rych Mills, Bob Sharpe, Greg Hummel, Jill Armstrong, Laura Seaman,
William Sleeth, Councilor Frank Etherington, Lori Wadsworth (Recorder), Kevin
Post (Landscape Architect), Josh Shea (Natural Area Coordinator)
Regrets: Tim Wolfe
Guests: Rob McIeavy, Orkin Canada

1. Geese Management Presentation – Rob McLeavy, Orkin Canada

• Rob McLeavy of Orkin Canada was in attendance to present information regarding the 2013 geese management program for Victoria Park.
• Rob gave his presentation through the use of power point slides and distributed hard copies of the information to group members.
• The program will include monitoring, documenting, egg depredation, geese relocation and reporting (monthly and annually).
• One change in the program this year is that dogs and laser lights won’t be utilized.
• William advised that two permits are required, one for the egg depredation and the other for geese relocation. The application for the egg depredation permit was submitted some time ago however the permit has not been received. The permit for egg depredation is
• required for March and the relocation permit is needed for June.
• Concern was expressed with the length of time it takes for the permits to be issued (approximately 4 to 6 weeks).
• Rob advised that the Canadian Wildlife Service is working towards issuing three year permits.
• Kevin Post advised he would contact the Canadian Wildlife Service regarding the status of the egg depredation permit.
• Councilor Etherington suggested he could contact the local MPP’s office regarding the issue with the amount of the time it takes for permits to be issued.
• Greg commented if it looks like the geese management program could be delayed due to a problem with the egg depredation permit not being received on time he will inform Councillor Etherington of this situation.
• Rob handed out copies of the sheets that will be used for data recording (observation data and nests).
• Following Rob’s presentation there was an opportunity for Working Group members to ask questions. Questions and answers included the following:
  • What is the geographic area for geese management activities in the park?
    •  the geographic area of geese management activities includes the main park perimeter and extends to the Iron Horse Trail.
  • Could nests that are found be marked i.e., with flags?
    • the only problem with marking nests is that markers could disappear. Maps are used to identify the location of the nests.
    • if a nest is reported outside of the program control area Orkin won’t have the ability to deal with the nest as control methods can only be used for those areas covered by the permit. If residents find nests outside of the control area the geographic area potentially could be expanded in the future to include additional areas.
  • Is there a way to track geese coming from out of the park?
    • there should be no hatchlings coming from nests within the park if the eggs are being oiled properly which means they would be coming from somewhere else.
  • What are the options to improve the program?
    • canine control methods are the most effective deterrent for geese. If it is observed that not utilizing the dogs this year could have had an effect on the geese numbers, canine control could be brought back in the future.
    • Dogs that are walked in the park also can act as a deterrent to geese.
• Rob commented that after the eggs are oiled un-hatched eggs would be counted. Nests and eggs would be counted weekly.
• Rych advised that he would arrange for an article similar to previous years to be included
• in the VPNA newsletter requesting residents to let William know if they spot a nest.
• Greg questioned whether something could be done through the Canadian Federation of Municipalities through Kitchener Council representatives Mayor Zehr and Berry Vrbanovic to address the geese problem on a provincial level as this issue affects many communities in Ontario. Perhaps there is an opportunity for Kitchener Council to pass a motion for taking the issue forward to the Canadian Federation of Municipalities.
• It was suggested perhaps a business case could be developed to do with the issue.
• Councilor Etherington advised he would talk to Councilor Vrbanovic and Mayor Zehr regarding the type of support Kitchener Council might have for passing a motion for taking the geese issue forward to the Canadian Federation of Municipalities.
• Action: Councilor Etherington to discuss with Councilor Vrbanovic and Mayor Zehr whether there might be support from Kitchener Council to pass a motion for taking the geese issue to the Canadian Federation of Municipalities, etc.
• Concern was expressed about the number of people who feed the ducks/geese in the park and that fines should be imposed in accordance with the bylaw.
• It was suggested the need for enforcement of the park bylaw prohibiting the feeding of ducks in Victoria Park should be re-emphasized to Bylaw staff.
• Frank advised he would talk to Shayne Turner, Director of Bylaw Enforcement regarding this issue.
• Action: Councillor Etherington to speak to Shayne Turner regarding the enforcement of the bylaw against feeding the ducks in Victoria Park.

2. Victoria Park Public Washroom Location

• William provided an update on the Victoria Park public washroom location. A recommendation went to the Planning and Strategic Initiatives Committee that construction of a new washroom facility in the vicinity of the parking lot at the corner of Jubilee Dr. and David Street be the preferred option. This preferred option was the result of the public information session held at the end of January.
• Once Council has approved this preferred option, Facilities Management in consultation with Park Planning and Development and Heritage Kitchener will proceed with detailed design and tender construction drawings of this new washroom building.
• The total project budget is $400,000.The budget includes a 50% grant contribution (maximum $200,000) from the Federal government with the remaining $200,000 coming from the Recreational Land Reserve Fund.
• The David Street/Jubilee Drive location is considered a more convenient location for the use areas in the Commons in all seasons in addition, it is adjacent to parking making it good for accessibility and surveillance and security and is also considered less disruptive to the residents.
• William suggested that prior to construction the public be updated on the plans and given the opportunity for input into the design process.
• There was discussion regarding the VPWG’s involvement in the design process.
• William commented that the key process will be through Heritage Kitchener as the proposed new building in the park is subject to a heritage impact assessment and final approval of Heritage Kitchener Committee and Council.
• As the plan proceeds William would like to bring whatever information is available back to the VPWG and have the group look at preliminary design information.
• There was discussion among the four citizen Working Group representatives as to whether they should have a separate meeting to create a list of ideas for the washroom design before the design phase. One of the citizen reps expressed he would prefer to see the design that is zreated and then react to the design ideas.
• Comments were made that consideration should be given to the placement of the washroom on the site and location of the entrance and also to include an area for benches for people to use to put on their skates in winter.
• William commented that the washroom design proposal will go to Heritage Kitchener once they have completed the impact assessment. William suggested the Working Group be given the opportunity to look at whatever is proposed to Heritage Kitchener.There will be a month period before approvals are given.
• He suggested that Working Group members submit their design ideas to him for consideration as soon as possible after Council approves the option. He would feed this information to the architect.
• There will be opportunities for the VPWG to provide input throughout the process.

3. Action Items – Update

• The following updates were provided regarding the action items from the November 27, 2012 VPWG meeting.
• Greg advised that Facilities Management has looked at the lighting at the recreation building off West Avenue near the Iron Horse Trail / creek crossing. He was informed by Doug Hergott that at one time the exterior wall had a wall pack on it however residents living in the vicinity of the building complained that the light was too bright and consequently it was removed. Doug will look into the possibility of having a light pack installed on the opposite side of the building.
• Greg has talked to staff in Traffic about the installation of a raised pedestrian walkway across Jubilee Drive at the Boathouse. The installation will be done sometime in the spring.
• Rych advised that the woman who had the complaint about the dog issue has connected with Shayne and the Humane Society.
• William advised that the railings on the island bridge have been installed. Also, the new pedestrian bridge is now open although not officially.
• Concern was expressed that the fencing is still up at the new pedestrian bridge. William responded that the Storm Water Utility staff was going to be taking care of the removal of the fencing.
• Action: William to check with the Storm Utility staff regarding the fencing to see when it will be removed.
• William advised that within the Victoria Park Strategic Plan Phase 2 (10 year capital forecast) there is a plan to expand the park by integrating a small triangular piece of land adjacent to the park near the Iron Horse Trail and the creek into the park property.
• Group members expressed they would like for the opportunity to read the Victoria Park Strategic Plan Phase 2 document.
• Action: William to bring copies of the Victoria Park Strategic Plan Phase 2 document to the next VPWG meeting.

• William will work with Lori on setting up the next VPWG meeting which will be scheduled sometime after Council has approved the public washroom location and more information is available regarding the design.

VICTORIA PARK WORKING GROUP MEETING