King Township acquires $5.5M new parkland from school board
The 8.4-acre parcel at 5885 King Rd. housed Nobleton Junior Public School

Sheila Wang
May 13, 2019
Yorkregion.com

King Township has snapped up property for $5.5 million from the York Region District School Board (YRDSB) to meet current and future park needs.

Council made the decision unanimously at a council meeting on Apr. 29 after receiving a staff report recommending the purchase.

“It’s in my ward and I’m super excited about the purchase,” said Ward 2 Councillor David Boyd. “One of the great things about this parcel is it’s right located in the core of Nobleton.”

The 8.4-acre piece of land at 5885 King Road — currently vacant — used to be the site of Nobleton Junior Public School. It was demolished a year ago.

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Staff recommended council to take over the land as it is adjacent to the Nobleton Community Sports Park and the township has become “reliant” on the soccer field for municipal use.

King purchased the parcel of land with funds from the Parkland Reserve Fund, according to the staff report.

Last August, the community park was renamed “Nobleton Lion Community Park” in recognition of the Nobleton Lions Club’s contributions.

With the completion of the acquisition, it expands the community area to about 23 acres. The park has been undergoing a three-stage renovation.

“I think one of the highlights of the purchase was that acquiring this parcel of land will contribute largely to the revitalization in Nobleton’s core,” Boyd said.

At the third stage of renovation, Boyd said he hopes the purchase of the land will help improve the park by adding an entrance to the park off King Road with additional core areas and additional parking space.

Meanwhile, council plans to have consultation with the community about “how best to use the space.”

Options including relocating the township’s assets to the property and allocating a portion of the site to be surplus lands in support of the cost of the acquisition drawn from the reserve fund.

The report states the parkland reserve fund had adequate funding to complete the transaction with a balance of $5.8 million as of Dec. 31, 2018.