Residents divided on flood plan for Thornhill's Gallanough Park

YorkRegion.com
July 24, 2014
Simone Joseph

Thornhill Councillor Alan Shefman will be asking Vaughan’s committee of the whole to reconsider an underground reservoir for Gallanough Park.

Vaughan council has already voted in favour of creating a dry pond water facility to prevent flooding.

But at a June 25 open house, residents urged Shefman to ask council to reconsider the planned reservoir, which operates like an underwater holding tank.

When a massive storm hit in August 2005, it caused major damage to public and private property in the Yonge and Centre streets area of Thornhill, where Gallanough Park is situated.

“Who wants to have a basement with eight feet of water? I saw some of this,” Shefman said. “The threat of flooding is very real. We need to do whatever we can to protect ourselves.”

That storm from 2005 is labelled a one-in-100-year storm because of how infrequently it happens.

A study done of the area concluded creating a dry pond facility in the park south of the Gallanough Resource Centre would be the best solution.

The dry pond would cost an estimated $1 million versus an estimated $5 million for an underground system.

Vaughan council decided not to approve the reservoir/underground option because it is too expensive to build.

The dry pond is more effective and will perform better than the underground tank, says Jack Graziosi, Vaughan’s director of engineering services. Most of the time, the pond area will be dry.

Shefman points out that after a major storm, the pond would only hold water for about four hours.

When the dry pond design was presented at the June open house, some residents had concerns ranging from worries that children would fall into the pond to health issues (such as mosquitoes, road contamination) and reduced property values.

Graziosi points out children will likely have little exposure to the stored pond water.

“In the middle of a storm, I don’t know many parents who let their kids out to play ... [or] schools who let their kids out for recess,” he said.

A group of residents at the meeting did agree with the pond proposal, Graziosi said.

Philip Hayman, who lives across the street from the park, is one of them. But, he believes residents need a more visual display of the planned park rather than just pictures of artists’ renderings.

“I’d like to see something to scale so I’m happy with the complete re-design,” he said.

Graziosi says there was a 3-D model at the public meeting, but Hayman says he never saw this.

Hayman believes other residents are concerned that they no longer have a say in alternatives for the park since council has already voted to go ahead with the dry pond.

“It caught a lot of people off guard. They thought there were still alternatives to be had. That disturbs some residents,” Hayman said.

He believes another meeting is needed.

“I understand decisions have to be made. This is a great alternative. If we could meet again, get more clarity, I am OK with it,” he said.

In a one-in-100-year storm, water in the park would accumulate to a maximum of two metres or approximately 10 feet maximum.

But, the majority of the time, it will be a soccer field, Graziosi said.

Currently, when the park doesn’t drain properly, the park is unusable, he said.

Graziosi hopes people appreciate the amount of public outreach done with this project.

“We have tried to listen to the community. We want to build something people will want to go to,” he said. The aim is to finalize the design in early fall, start construction in the winter of 2015, so by the spring, the project is done and the community can use the revamped park.

Vaughan council’s committee of the whole meets Sept. 2.