Some citizens and at least one municipal politician in North Saanich are having last-minute second thoughts about building an airplane-shaped jungle gym overlooking Patricia Bay.
Citizens such as Kerry Finley, a biologist and longtime advocate for natural spaces, say that they are horrified the children’s climbing structure, with its aircraft shape, will become part of a view of Garry oak meadow stretching down to Patricia Bay.
“It just shows a callous disregard for an important vista, of nature, history, culture, you name it,” Finley said.
North Saanich Coun. Jack Thornburgh spoke out as the lone opponent of the park at a council meeting on Monday night.
A majority of councillors voted to spend an additional $25,000 on the playground and structure already under construction in Jubilee Park at the northwest corner of the Victoria International Airport land.
The money is on top of $100,000 council already agreed to spend for half the costs of the playground, the other $100,000 coming from private donations and the federal government.
The extra money is needed for cost overruns on things like taxes, concrete and construction.
Thornburgh said objections such as Finley’s helped convince him some public process has been overlooked since August 2015 when the project was first approved.
“I think it is kind of unfortunate about the way it has crept through council,” he said.
“That whole spot [Jubilee Park] just seems too heritage and too tranquil.”
The site is on the west side of the peninsula, near Mills and West Saanich roads. It is next to the historic Holy Trinity Anglican Church, 1319 Mills Rd., which dates to 1885. Its cemetery includes the graves of many North Saanich pioneers.
Thornburgh and Finley said the fields were once part of cultivation efforts by First Nations. They used the wide stretches of Garry oak meadow habitat to grow camas for their edible bulbs.
Under the initial plan, costs were to be split 50-50 between the municipality, and a combination of donations and federal grants, including a $60,000 Canada 150 grant.
The Victoria Airport Authority donated the 3.6 acres and its business tenants later teamed up to raise about $40,000.
North Saanich took a step into crowdfunding, aiming for an additional $44,000. A website was launched with a Vancouver company called Wayblaze. But this week, with a posted deadline of Sept. 30, the campaign was sitting at a little under $8,000.
Some councillors are still enthusiastic, saying the project will add much-needed play space for children.
“We don’t have a municipal playground for children in North Saanich,” said Mayor Alice Finall.
“And we do have children in North Saanich — I have even seen them out there walking the path [around the airport] with their parents.”
Finall said she finds the opposition surprising. Discussions about what to do with the park have been ongoing for at least seven years, going back to when the Victoria Airport Authority donated the land to the municipality.
The park will be popular with children, as well as people who like planes, she said.
Families can enjoy an afternoon with a picnic, little ones can clamber on the playground equipment, and plane enthusiasts can watch aircraft land and take off.
“A lot of people are plane nuts,” Finall said.
“And I’ve had a lot of people say to me already ‘What a great idea, I’ll have something to do while the kids play there.’ ”
Coun. Heather Gartshore also supports the park and said she appreciates the objections.
But Gartshore said the time for suggesting something different has come and gone. Ground has been cleared, foundation work begun, forms are ready for concrete to be poured and the aircraft-shaped climbing structure is on its way.
“We are a couple of years past the point where we should be talking about whether this should go there or not.”
