Ontario's newest provincial park, Uxbridge Urban, opens July 1
New park opens for limited use July 1
It's not often Ontario gets a new provincial park.
But over the past 15 months, Ontario Parks have scrambled to open Uxbridge Urban Provincial Park, about 70 kilometres northeast of Toronto. It will be the province's first urban provincial park, should a recent private member's bill pass.
"We're so close to rapidly growing areas where green space is so important to protect," says Charlene Coulter, a program manager with Ontario Parks who recently took CBC for a tour.
The park is made up of six parcels of land, measuring 526 hectares.
"It's not a traditional provincial park where people think of one large land mass. They will be multiple disconnected parcels, but connected through trails," said Coulter.
The property used to be owned by businessman Joey Tanenbaum. He wanted to build a mega housing development — but faced much opposition from locals. Instead, he swapped the land with the province for property in Pickering.
Walking through the park, you can spot signs of its previous use: paths made of interlock bricks snake throughout, and a large wooden dock overlooks a small wetland area. Large metal gates open into the park. The gates read Gad Eden, the name the Tanenbaums once gave the property.
"We actually haven't done a whole lot," says Coulter. "This is how the property was, which was great because we could just basically open it up."
Coulter says locals have been trying to protect the land for 20 years. Public access starts July 1, although it will be limited at first — there are hiking trails for day-use and a few parking spots.
Coulter says Ontario Parks is currently putting together a park management plan to figure out what the future will look like, including expansion.
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With files from Laura Pedersen