Voting now open to rename Burlington park
Unity Park, Truth and Reconciliation Park among shortlisted options
A list of more than 500 new names for a Burlington park has been narrowed down to just four finalists.
The site on Woodview Road is currently known as Ryerson Park, but the city is looking to give it a new name that reflects "equity, diversity and inclusion," according to a media release.
City council voted unanimously to renamed the park following a decision from the city's public school board to scrap the same title on nearby school.
"This was done out of respect for Indigenous residents in our community and visitors to our city — particularly following the recent discovery of mass graves at former residential schools," stated mayor Marianne Meed Ward.
The school and park were named for Edgerton Ryerson to recognize the contributions made to Ontario's education system, but he was also "instrumental in the design of Canada's residential school system," according to the city's media release.
Hundreds of submissions were made to the naming committee, which selected three.
The city said a fourth option was added following input from Stephen Paquette, an Indigenous elder and the Halton District School Board's Indigenous Knowledge Guide.
Here's a look at the short list of names and explanations provided by Burlington:
- Head of the Lake Park: This name was chosen to reflect the name of the current land agreement in place that allows settler communities to occupy the location of the park in question, as per the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation.
- Unity Park: When forms of hatred and attempts to divide people are on the rise we need to find ways of expressing what we think is important. Unity means that we embrace our differences, that we value other people's experience and beliefs
- Truth and Reconciliation Park: To heal as a nation we need to speak the truth and reconcile our relationship with the Indigenous peoples of Canada.
- Sweetgrass Park: Sweetgrass is used as a purification medicine in ceremony to purify ourselves and to heal.
Online voting is now open and will continue until Nov. 19.