Sudbury's new Kivi Park gains another 120 hectares thanks to the Fielding family
"It'll be a gem in the south end of the city," says councillor Deb McIntosh
A new park in the south end of Greater Sudbury is about to get a lot bigger.
This year, the site of the former Long Lake Public School was donated to the city and added to the neighbouring park.
The school was closed in 2012 due to budget constraints and demolished in March, but the site was put back in city hands thanks to a donation from a long-time resident, 99-year-old Lily Fielding.
Now, under her direction, the same family is set to donate about 121 hectares — 300 acres — of bush land, greatly expanding the newly renamed Kivi Park.
As a point of comparison, the city told CBC News that Bell Park "measures 44.95 hectares or 111.07 acres."
Deb McIntosh is the city councillor for the area.
"It is an incredibly generous gift from the Fielding Foundation. The people of Long Lake are very excited about this. It'll be a gem in the south end of the city."
The formal land donation is expected to become final on Thursday.
McIntosh said there have been some preliminary discussions about what form the new park should take, but no decisions have yet been made.
Kivi Park is named for Lily Fielding's parents. A statement to CBC News from Fielding via her grandson said, "I am making this donation in memory of my parents Susanna and John Kivi and all of the families of Finnish descent who immigrated to the Long Lake area and helped make Sudbury a dynamic and diverse community."