Waterfront Festival Plaza officially opened to public
- Ron Giofu
- 1 hour ago
- 2 min read
The fences are finally down and residents and visitors can now enjoy the new Waterfront Festival Plaza.
The plaza, built on the site of the former Duffy’s Tavern & Motor Inn at 306 Dalhousie St., features accessible walkways, lighting, irrigation, underground servicing, shoreline improvements, railings, flower beds and further landscaping.
That work followed extensive land remediation efforts done in consultation with the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks (MECP), some of which caused delays to the project.
The cost of the Waterfront Festival Plaza project is just over $3 million.
The ribbon cutting was held last Wednesday afternoon.
“This has been a long awaited project,” said Heidi Baillargeon, the town’s director of parks, facilities and recreation. “It’s been a long haul and we’re finally opening the space.”
Baillargeon said it will be “a welcoming space” for people and thanked town staff past and present who worked on the project. She also offered thanks and appreciation to a long list of companies, consultants and individuals who worked on the new waterfront plaza.
The Caldwell First Nations were also recognized for their contributions to the project.
Baillargeon acknowledged residents, particularly neighbours of the property, had to endure a lot of inconvenience including noise, dust and looking at the fencing for so long.
“It is a remarkable addition to the town’s park system,” said Baillargeon. “Thank you to everyone for making this vision a reality.”
There are possibilities for future features to be added to the waterfront festival plaza, including an amphitheatre and transient marina.
The next council and future councils would have to approve those expenditures.
“There’s a lot to come and this is only the beginning,” said Baillargeon.
“This is going to be the gem,” added Mayor Michael Prue.
Prue noted the land was purchased in 2017 with a vision of creating an extension of the King’s Navy Yard Park.
“That’s nine years it’s taken us to get this far,” he said. “2017 is two councils ago.”
Prue also noted that a marina and amphitheatre could be coming in the future, should the funding be there.
“Those are all still possibilities,” he said.
“It’s been a long time coming,” said Deputy Mayor Chris Gibb. “It’s open. Public access to the water is incredibly important. The Navy Yard Park is a jewel in Amherstburg.”Gibb also referenced possible future phases. “We’ll see what the next council decides to do,” he said.
Waterfront Festival Plaza officially opened to public
By Ron Giofu
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