6/30/14

No Parking at Lippert Park

The widening of Weber street is bringing a great deal of change to our neighbourhood. Streets will be closed (Breithaupt and, ultimately, Waterloo), houses have been torn down and Lippert Park will gain some land as Weber is straightened.

This is Lippert Park as it appeared a couple of years ago:



Notice the wide shoulder on the street. There was a nice 3 metre boulevard between the street and the park where people often parked their cars. The boulevard could easily accommodate three cars. Parents with children could unload strollers, food and other essentials as they guided their young charges into in the park. For events like the annual picnic this small amount of parking was useful for delivering tents, tables, food, musical equipment and other items. We have also had fire trucks and police cars park there (and drive into the park) for community events.

Weber Street is being widened and straightened so Lippert Park will gain some area (the new side-walk has already been finished). But despite the increase in size, there will be no parking in front of the park. The closest location will be on Louisa Street which is around the corner:


The MHBPNA has contacted several people from the Region of Waterloo (Weber Street is a "regional road") and the City of Kitchener over the past year to ask about parking and ensure it can be a part of the plan. The reply we received recently from Peter Linn (who is an engineer and Senior Project Manager with the Region) sums up the government's position on this issue:

"I had requested feedback from the City of Kitchener Parks Department on this issue several weeks ago. Their response was as follows;
 · Current City Parks Bylaw prohibits parking on park frontages, including parking on boulevards whether paved or grassed
· Lippert Park is classified as a “Neighbourhood Park” and as such is meant to be a “walk to” park
· The City does not have any plans to develop a parking lot within Lippert Park

The Weber Street right-of-way is obviously under the jurisdiction of the Region of Waterloo. The Region does not allow off-street parking areas within its designated road right-of-ways to service abutting land uses."

Huron Park, which was the original name for George Lippert Park, was created as a result of a donation of 2.5 acres of land by a developer in 1936. It is reasonable neighbours have been able to park there for over 50 years and this has not been abused. Without any consultation (or acknowledgement the parking even existed) this convenience has been erased. 

Canada Post is claiming we will all be switching to community mailboxes over the next few years and our neighbourhood association felt Lippert Park would be a perfect location

As we can see from this "Google Satellite" image:



there is a great deal of space around the park and there will be even more after the construction is finished. Our Neighbourhood Association believes that if we had even three "time limited" parking sports they would encourage parents with young children to use the park. There is also a community garden that is several years old and gardeners may wish to bring soil and heavier implements at certain times. If the park is used to host events then equipment delivery would be made much easier with parking. This park will also be the terminus of the "Spur Trail" which will join Kitchener and Waterloo. 

For the corner of Louisa and Weber the design was originally going to include an ornamental fence and a "landscaping bed". Both items have been deleted for budget reasons.  

There is an opportunity here to plan for something exceptional, a flexible location with very limited parking, a community mailbox, spur trail interface and more. If different levels of government talked with each other and engaged residents we could achieve a great deal and help build community. Instead, the present road design, which has "no parking" curbs and side-walks some distance from the park itself, discourages all of these uses.

What do you think? If you have an opinion please comment on this Blog entry and/or email us at mhbpna@gmail.com. Our Neighbourhood association cannot pursue issues of park design unless we see support from the community. 

Ted Parkinson
Communications Director
MHBPNA

6/27/14

The ART of Traffic Calming

On Monday June 30th, the MHBPNA will be representing our Neighbourhood in support of a pilot project to create intersection artwork to help traffic calming. 

Councillor Glenn-Graham is bringing forward a motion to start a feasibility study for a pilot project with the intent of starting with Ahrens and Wilhelm.  



Please come to see the presentation.  Any support would be helpful.

Here is an example of what we can do:

Watch the Placemaking Halifax video on this page

Lane Burman
Co-Chair, MHPNA

6/24/14

Last Saturday night was a excellent and good time in Kitchener

Kitchener celebrated the 'first annual' Summer Lights festival. I think that is what it was called. Here was King Street:





Here was city hall plaza with rocking good music:



Here was the NUMUS improv ensemble in front of the KWAG with random conductors.


It was quite the party. Stores open, lots of great food and fun. 

Now THIS coming Saturday there is going to be another extremely fun event at the Breithaupt Centre. Do you know what it is?

6/23/14

Volunteers needed for dance this Saturday

Please help us put on an amazing dance this Saturday evening at the Breithaupt Centre for the 0-9 and 10+ crowd. Much Music will be presenting videos and fun. We cannot do this without the help of our community. 



Email us at mhbpna@gmail.com if you can help. Are you a high school student needing volunteer hours? A neighbour with insomnia? A great person just looking to help? 8 pm to 12 pm is our most need time frame.

6/19/14

END OF THE YEAR MUCH VIDEO DANCE

Remember those dances??





The Mt Hope Breithaupt Park Neighbourhood Association is hosting a MUCH Video dance on Saturday, June 28th at the Breithaupt Centre.

As we did last dance, the time from 6:00pm to 8:00pm is reserved for children ages 0-9 (please bring sufficient hearing protection for infants) and from 8:00pm to 11:30 is for children 10+.

0-9 $5.00 at the door

10+ $10.00 at the door

There will be refreshments for purchase.

(the food for sale may, or may not resemble the food in this picture)



Music is geared towards each age group. Barney, Kermit and Hannah for the 0-9.  Katy, Taylor and dare I say Justin for 10+



How many times will we hear, Happy, or Gangnam Style, or What does the Fox say?

Parents are freely admitted.  This works well for the 0-9 group, but the 10+ may have issue with it.  If you want to hang out while your pre teen is at the dance, the City provides free WIFI.

I invite you to share this with as many people as you can. Give us a hand at making this a successful night. 


6/12/14

Dance, Dancer, Danced, Dancing

Please share with any young persons you know. MHBPNA is sponsoring a fun "end of year" Much Music dance at the venerable BC. Check it out and drop in!


Please click to enlarge:






And another option:










6/8/14

Second Annual Neighbourhood Bike Tour a success!

Our Neighbourhood Association's Partnerships Director, Chris Dewar, led us on a fun bike tour of our neighbourhood. On Sunday, June 1, we met at the parking lot across from the Breithaupt Block. 

Chris brought his trusty pump to ensure everyone's tires were up to the 2 hour ride.


We had about 16 people show up at the parking lot, eager to cycle through our neighbourhood and talk about some of the landmarks. We had kids on bikes, seniors on 'one speeds', higher end mountain and touring bikes, and everything in between. It was a mosaic of bikes and people (click for larger image).



Chris led us on a route that was roughly around the edges of our neighbourhood (our neighbourhood boundaries can be seen here).  Here we are heading down Breithaupt Street beside historic buildings.



We did the route that is shown here. Just over half way through the ride we stopped at Breithaupt Park for a rest and some refreshments provided by the Mount Hope Breithaupt Park neighbourhood association. We had a chance to chat about our area. Most residents don't realize that our neighbourhood stretches from King street on one side, all the way to the edge of the expressway on the other. Our route through Breithaupt Park includes a challenging hill, but walking is always an option. No one got left behind! (click for larger image)





We cycled over 10 kilometres in about two hours and had some time to talk about some of the ongoing neighbourhood issues and meet new friends. The weather was beautiful and it was a great experience. We hope to see everyone out again next year!