Gateway Park Revitalization ‘Starts This Month,’ Mayor Says

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Parks staff are expected to begin cleanup and maintenance work on “abandoned” Gateway Park this month, now that the city has received a 99-year license to operate the privately owned linear property.

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“We are proud stewards of our city’s naturalized areas and we intend to raise Gateway Park to the same high standards as all of our public parks,” Mayor Drew Dilkens said Tuesday. He and local councilors Fabio Costante and Rino Bortolin announced the licensing agreement with Detroit River Tunnel Company, a subsidiary of Canadian Pacific Railway, which continues to own the property because it is at the top of its 111-year-old CP rail tunnel that It runs parallel to Cameron Avenue.

“The revitalization of Gateway Park begins this month to make it an attractive, safe and accessible passive park for all to enjoy,” said Dilkens.

The City Council has committed $ 700,000 to revitalize the park, a one-kilometer strip of natural area in the urban core that has been largely forgotten for decades. The tunnel company is paying the city $ 300,000 to help with maintenance costs: $ 100,000 upfront followed by $ 20,000 annually for 10 years.

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“Maintenance work by parks staff is expected to begin this month to clean up the site and elevate the abandoned property environment to the same high standards of safety, accessibility and aesthetics as all public parks in Windsor,” he says. a press release from the city.

Work will include adding: a fully accessible multipurpose asphalt trail with access ramps; signage for park benches and garbage and recycling bins; and park lights.

The park runs between Riverside Drive and Wyandotte Street. Although it is a kilometer long, it is only between 50 and 70 meters wide and is bordered by thick vegetation of plants and trees. Along an existing path in the middle of the park is a row of Japanese cherry trees, planted in 2002 by the Consulate General of Japan as a symbol of international friendship.

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Costante, whose District 2 borders the park to the west, said in the statement that the “significant investment” will ensure that the park not only reaches its long-anticipated potential, but will also become a safe and accessible space for the residents.

“I am excited to add a kilometer of parkland to our urban core for residents to enjoy for generations to come,” he said.

Bortolin, whose District 3 borders the park to the east, said the rejuvenated park is a key part of the redevelopment plans for University Avenue West, where several residential / commercial projects are underway, ”he said.

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