Recreational Land Plan for Toronto open for comments

The long awaited Recreation Land Plan for Toronto was released on 30th July and there are proposals for upgrades, acquisitions and extensions of recreational land in our local area.

This plan aims to identify the recreational facilities needed to serve the increase in population till 2025, so please consider dropping Council a line or two about what they are proposing by 5pm Monday 12th Sept.

The following information has been summarised from some of the documents available on LMCC’s website.

The priority system for new works

• High priority- short term upto 2020 
• Medium priority - mid term up to 2025 
• Low priority - long term 2025 and beyond 

There are new ideas for the ‘Pony Club land’ at Carey Bay- Hampton St Reserve

The land is categorised as sportsground but not used as such and so better use of the space is being proposed to include;

• Dog exercise area upgraded to a fenced dog park. Dog exercise areas can have disposal bins, water supply, seating, shade and fencing- High priority 
• Multi-purpose half court. These facilities contain a basketball hoop, netball ring and/or tennis hit up wall - Medium priority 
• A new community garden, ‘a plot where herbs, fruits, flowers or vegetables are cultivated. They provide a range of social, physical and psychological benefits and a mechanism for people to interact with others- Medium priority 
• A new BMX (Bicycle Motocross) track at Hampton St or Cooks St Toronto. The need for BMX is demonstrated by the number of unauthorised informal BMX tracks constructed in bushland areas and by the number of community requests for these facilities- Medium priority. 

Coal Point Ridgeline

Tracks and Trails upgrade 1260m of track once all the land has been acquired. ‘Develop signposted and interpretative walking trails though the ridge line reserve accessible from Lorron Close, Coal Point- Low priority

Toronto Foreshore Park

Expansion and major upgrade of the park and playground equipment with new outdoor gym equipment. The upgrade of the Toronto Foreshore Park is one of the key recommendations of this plan and is High priority.

Components of the plan include;

• A promenade from Wharf Rd to the land acquisition area with exercise stations, seating, feature trees, solar lighting, al fresco dining 
• A major playground with a sailing theme 
• A public domain area extension along the foreshore 
• A shared pathway from the Greenway along the entire length of the park to wharf Rd-High priority 
• A park entry feature that connects the town centre to the park 
• Large open areas for festivals, markets, bands and civic events 
• Current car parks would be relocated back from the foreshore 
• Toronto Lions Park- Upgrade. Relocate boat ramp and car park. -High priority 
• Goffet Park upgrade -Medium priority

A bit of background…

To fund the delivery of public community infrastructure, local government is able to levy development contributions to fund new, or extend facilities that are required as a result of new development.

The development contributions plan for the Toronto area is now on public exhibition until Sept 11th.  As a community we are being invited to input into the plan, written submissions can be posted to General Manager , LMCC Box 1906, HRMC, NSW 2310  or emailed by 5pm Monday 12th Sept.

The Development Contributions Plan for the Toronto Catchment 2015-2030, covers 22 suburbs from Teralba to Wangi Wangi/Myuna Bay and out to Freemans Waterhole.

In 2015 it was estimated that there were 31,487 people (15% of the City’s population) in this area which is expected to reach 36,899 by 2030. Most of the projected growth of 5,412 people will be located in and around the Toronto area which extends to Ambrose St.

Some of the local demographics that are shaping the plan include

• Carey Bay, Coal Point and Toronto having a higher than the City average of people aged 65 and over,
• Coal Point has a higher proportion of couples without children than the city average.
• Carey Bay and Toronto areas have a higher proportion of single person households which is indicative of the large number of seniors living complexes.
• Coal Point has 99.2% of it’s dwellings as separate houses, whilst Carey Bay has a higher proportion (19.3%) of semi-detached house than the catchment average of 6.9%, and Toronto is the only suburb that has a higher proportion (10.5%) of apartments than the City average of 5.3%.
• New residents are expected to be concentrated in 6 suburbs with Toronto expecting a 24% increase in total population, an additional 1,398 people.

Estimated Residential population by suburb

Suburb	Existing dwellings	Existing persons	Projected extra  dwellings 2030	Projected extra persons	Total dwellings 2030	Total persons 2030	Growth %
Carey Bay	471	931	21	36	492	967	3.9
Coal Point	773	1736	44	91	817	1827	5.3
Kilaben Bay	551	1340	26	51	577	1391	3.8
Toronto	2764	5825	766	1398	3530	7223	24

The projected changing demographic will see the population age with people over 65 increasing from 20.7 to 23.7% and the population of people under 19 declining from 23.7 to 21.9%.

Each suburb is expected to follow these trends with  “The infill development in Toronto’s town centre likely to attract a range of different lifecycle groups including young couples, couples starting families, singles and older couples.