COURTENAY, B.C. – The City of Courtenay is looking at adding another park in the not-too-distant future.
There is no timeline set for McPhee Meadows, according to Dave Snider, the city’s director of recreation and cultural services.
During 2019, the city is entering into a design process in consultation with the community to determine the best timeline and best use of the land, just off 3rd Street towards the Puntledge River.
The 4.7 hectare (11.81 acre) parcel of land is co-owned by the City of Courtenay and the Nature Trust of B.C., with the city owning 60 percent interest in the title.
All structures were removed from the property, which includes 576 metres of shoreline. A historic orchard is still on the property.
Snider said the property is much larger than Puntledge Park, and will be one of the city’s largest parks.
He also told city council earlier this week that the McPhee family is ready to see it opened, but there was a “process involved.” Donor wishes and key features still needed to be ensured.
“We want to be very sensitive in how we open this up,” Snider said. “We want to ensure there are only positive uses on that site. And so we’ll be doing a very sensitive opening when the time comes, so we’d ask that the public be patient and wait for that good communication and good consultation process before entering the site.”
Currently, there is no public access to the property.
