Weston Park gets an upgrade

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This article was published 24/07/2017 (3153 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Weston area families have a newly upgraded park to enjoy this summer, thanks to an investment from the City of Winnipeg.

The new upgrades include playground features for kids aged two to five and five to 12, as well as new swings, a half-court basketball court, pathways, fencing, benches, picnic tables and garbage cans.

Coun. Scott Gillingham (St. James-Brooklands-Weston) championed the project, which cost a total of $312,000, and he said it’s one of several initiatives that he and other councillors have worked on in the area.

“If you add it all up it’s well over a million dollars,” Gillingham said at the park unveiling on July 17. “The Weston Community Centre down the road, that renovation has been completed… the Campion Tot Lot play structure has been redone just a few blocks over and now this, the Weston Park playground.

“Why the investment? Because Weston is a great community with a rich history and a very bright future. It’s a community worth investing in.”

Gillingham added that the location of the park, close to approximately 200 residents living in Manitoba housing, made it an important project for him.

“When we walk through our neighbourhood and drive the streets and see new play structures… it gives you a sense of pride in your community,” Gillingham said. “Not only is this a place to call home, but it becomes an attractive neighbourhood for other people looking for a home to put down roots.”

Fourteen-year-old Branham, an area resident, spoke at the unveiling.

“We’ve been waiting for this park a long time,” he said.

“It’s going to be really fun and I hope we get along here and bring the Weston community together here, so thank you,” Abdi, 14, added.

“I envision this playground will really become a microcosm of what Winnipeg, what our province, in fact, what our nation really is — a community that’s rich in diversity and strong in unity,” Gillingham said.

“This will become an important meeting place, not just for children to play, but parents to gather, for people to meet one another.”