Lynde Creek Park

Project Background

In the Winter of 2020, the Town of Whitby started the detailed design for Whitby's newest district park located on the east side of Coronation Road, North of Rossland Road in the newly built subdivision development. The 3.73 hectare park site is bounded by forested open space lands to the east and a planted stormwater management pond to the south.

The proposed district park will help serve a diversity of ages and abilities of the growing community for years to come. It is designed to the Towns highest level of accessibility and will incorporate a resilient rubberized surface around the playground equipment. Park construction is in-progress and anticipated for completion in spring 2023.

Park features and amenities included in the proposed design include:

• irrigated and lit soccer field
• sports field lighting
• parking for 33 cars
• multi-skills court equipped for ball hockey and basketball.
• playground with rubberized surfacing
• sand play area
• splash pad
• shade shelter
• open lawn area for passive recreational use
• fitness/parkour area
• walking trail with bench rest areas
• shade trees
• native naturalized plantings to support pollinator species

Through the park design process, a park site’s opportunities and constraints are carefully examined to inform the best arrangement of the proposed features and amenities. Some of the factors considered include:

• safety and security incorporating the principles of Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED);
• views into and out of the site; both positive and negative;
• the site topography;
• environment/ecology;
• adjacent land uses; both incompatible or favourable;
• vehicular and pedestrian circulation patterns;
• universal accessibility;
• microclimate (solar and wind exposure)

Ask Parks

Q. What goes into planning a park?

Q. Why do you love designing parks?

Q. How do you decide between putting engineered wood fiber or a rubber surface in a park?

Planning Background

The Town has four different Park classifications including Town, District, Local and Parkette; all of which serve a different function and contain different park elements and amenities.

A Town Park has major facilities and contains community centres, arenas, swimming pools and lighted athletic fields and is intended to serve the recreational needs of the whole community.

A District Park such as Lynde Creek Park is designed to serve the recreational needs of a larger neighbourhood or series of neighbourhoods. They are for primarily active recreational uses including lighted athletic fields, playgrounds, courts and parking areas. Various sport user groups rely on District Parks to undertake the various sports programming for youth minor sports across the community.

Local Parks and smaller Parkettes are intended to serve the recreational needs of the immediate neighbourhood for active and passive recreational uses. Local Parks contain sports fields, playgrounds, courts, walkways and in some cases splash pads. Smaller Parkettes normally contain playgrounds, seating areas and walkways.

The Town's Official Plan and several Council approved guiding documents help direct the development of our parks. These include the Culture, Parks, Recreation and Open Space Plan (CPROS) and the Sports Facility Strategy (SFS). Both of these studies account for trends, demographics, current inventory and service levels.

Have additional questions about this project? Email David Billham, Landscape Architect at billhamd@whitby.ca.