Looking for improvements to Vaughan's Maxey Park

YorkRegion.com
Dec. 11, 2015
Tim Kelly

It’s time for some minimal improvements to Maxey Park, say parents who just want a place for their kids to play.

The Woodbridge neighbourhood park, located off Riverside Drive and Willis Road in the middle of a dense, residential area, has five outdoor bocce courts and two screened-in tennis courts, but not much for young children other than a pair of slides in the middle of a green field.

That’s not good enough for Melinda Tagliarino, mother of a two-year-old, and mom Angela Orrico, who has three- and eight-year-old kids.

The mothers live in homes on nearby Birch Hill Road, a short walk to Maxey Park, but, they say, a long and dangerous trek to the next nearest child-friendly outdoor park.

“When I take my son there, there is not much he can do other than the slides,” said Tagliarino.

She said it would be nice if the park had a swing set or other amenities, but has been told, “there is no money in the (city’s) budget… to improve Maxey Park.”

For Orrico, Maxey Park isn’t even a consideration any more.

“My kids don’t want to go to that one. There’s nobody there ever, so they can’t interact and socialize with other kids,” she said of the park.

Orrico and Tagliarino signed a petition that includes 41 residents who live in the vicinity of the park, asking for improvements to come in the next year or two.

Included in the wish list are swings, monkey bars, a fire pole, various climbing apparatuses, a basketball court and a walkway area from the parking lot to the existing park area. They would also like the existing playground area changed from sand to “sponge surfacing.”

Franca Porrenta, a longtime area resident whose children are now in their 20s, is helping the parents push for park improvements.

Porrenta said while it’s well past time when her own children could benefit from Maxey Park kid-friendliness, she wants to see younger parents and their kids reap the rewards of development.

 She said she has been encouraged to take her wish list to council, which she has done, but is still awaiting action.

The Maxey group came to the budget committee and spoke in late November, making its case for more for Maxey Park to benefit children.

“We actually brought some kids to the podium. They (council committee) presented us with a motion of a draft for the possibility of some outside funding,” said Porrenta, suggesting money for Maxey’s kids’ needs may well come from private sources.

That was confirmed by West Woodbridge Councillor Tony Carella, longtime local representative for the area.

Carella made the case that Vaughan park needs are prioritized on the basis of safety first.

“If we have a park and the equipment is no longer safe, that’s what gets priority,” Carella said in an interview.

He added Maxey Park has seen improvements in the past number of years, with resurfacing of the tennis courts and a plan to add more parking spaces.

“That’s a park that’s very much on my radar and has been for the last years,” he said.
 Carella said the concerns of residents have been noted by staff.

With imminent action unlikely, based on what they’ve heard so far, Porrenta, Tagliarino and Orrico don’t plan to stand still and wait for the city to take action.

Porrenta suggested the kids may pool their resources together to raise cash and other funding sources may be searched out.

“So much is going on, so many new younger families with kids have moved in and (Maxey Park) still hasn’t been touched,” said Orrico.

“They say it’s going to be reviewed between 2017-25, may look at it between those years,” said Orrico, who wants to see improvements well in advance of the proposed time frame.