2015 AJAX WATERFRONT INITIATIVES

Transcription

1 2015 AJAX WATERFRONT INITIATIVES

2 2014 Completed Projects Canoe Dock & Fishing Nodes Carruthers Splashpad Simcoe Point Cemetery Rain Gardens Pickering Beach Bioswales 2015 Environmental Events

3 Catherine Bridgeman, Manager, Infrastructure & Asset Management, Operations & Environmental Services, Town of Ajax

4 Canoe / Kayak Docks and Fishing Nodes Identified in the 2011 Shoreline Improvement Strategy Greater Toronto and Area Waterfront Urban Recreational Fisheries Plan Goal is to provide opportunities for recreational activities on the waterfront Partnered with TRCA in 2012 to design and implement this project 4

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6 CANOE / KAYAK DOCKS AND FISHING NODES 6

7 CARRUTHERS MARSH SPLASHPAD Identified in the 2005 Waterfront Management Plan Site supported with washrooms, concessions, pedestrian access and playground Theme relates to Carruthers Marsh Partnered with TRCA for splashpad outfall 7

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10 SIMCOE POINT CEMETARY IMPROVEMENTS New Fencing New or Refurbished Plaque Erosion Control Tree Pruning & Plantings

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13 Rain Gardens Steve Ruddy March 4, 2015

14 Rain Gardens on Lake Driveway Design for 2013 Construction 2014 Example in Mississauga Lakeview District

15 Typical Rain Garden Plan View Cross Section

16 Rain Garden No. 1

17 Rain Garden No. 2

18 Rain Garden No. 3

19 Project Status Update and Next Steps Retained Contractor: Hawkins Construction Construction Completed late fall, 2014 Monitoring of Rain Gardens: Next two years

20 Jade Schofield Environmental Sustainability Coordinator Operations &Environmental Services Town of Ajax

21 Pickering Beach Bioswales The RBC Blue Water Project is a 10-year global charitable commitment of $50 million to help provide access to drinkable, swimmable, fishable water, now and for future generations. Partnership between the Sierra Club of Canada, TRCA and the Town of Ajax applied for a grant through the program with the focus of installing one bio swale. In the Fall of 2013, Sierra Club Canada in partnership with the Town and the TRCA received a grant of $60,000 from the RBC Blue Water Project Leadership Grant. The TRCA supported the project with an additional $20,000 to allow for two bio-swales to be installed along the shoreline. Open House for the design concept was held in June Construction was completed in November 2014.

22 Sand Dune Installation In addition to the bioswales the Town and the TRCA also installed a 2 nd sand dune at Pickering beach. The purpose of this is to: Extend the beach sand dunes across the beach frontage Restore naturalized habitat Provide an aesthetically appropriate barrier between beach and parkland

23 Project Benefits Improved aesthetics & safety of the beach Reduced direct storm water discharge onto the beach Improved safety with removal of steel culverts currently on the beach Additional habitat restoration Consistent with the Goose Management Plan

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25 Paradise Park Bioswale

26 2015 Engagement Opportunities Included in the grant application were funds for additional opportunities within the grant application included a series of education events with the Sierra Club of Canada, Community Planting Events for the Bio-Swale vegetation and Interpretive Signage Community Plantings The first planting took place in September 2014 Second scheduled with school groups on April 22 nd All shrubs and trees are of native variety Signage An interpretive sign is scheduled to be designed by end of April with installation taking place in May Community Events A number of community events will be taking place between March and May 2015.

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28 Greening Your Grounds Workshop Saturday May 28 th 2015, Carruthers Marsh Pavilion p.m. What is a rain garden? How does a rain garden work? Should I install a permeable patio? Learn about the newest trends in residential landscaping and how to use them to add pizzazz to your property. Plus registrants will receive a door prize!

29 Spring 2015 Events Earth Hour March 28 th, St Francis Centre, 7 p.m. Live Performance of Enviro Drum! Plus learn energy saving tips and win prizes that can help cut your energy usage & costs at home! Vertical Vegetable Workshop May p.m. Carruthers Creek Pavilion, April 18 th Looking for a great way to grow healthy, organic and inexpensive produce? Only have a small amount of space? Local expert Ken Brown will reveal easy and inventive ways to use vertical spaces to grow your own food. Compost Giveaway April 18 th, Operations Centre, 800 Salem Rd N, 8 a.m.- noon Each spring, the Region and the Town offers free compost to residents as a thank you for diverting organics and leaf and yard waste from landfill, plus drop off your e-waste for free! Green Living Days April 22 nd -28 th, A week long celebration of the environment! Workshops on the ecology of running water, Xeriscaping, the annual 20 Minute Makeover, community tree planting & a movie screening! Ajax in Bloom June 1-30 th 2015 Ajax in Bloom is a celebration of civic pride, environmental responsibility and beautification through community participation with consideration to the promotion of green spaces throughout the town. From June 1-30 th, residents, businesses, and schools are invited to nominate what they believe will become the best gardens in Town.

30 Summer/ Fall 2015 Events Trout Unlimited Family Fun Day June 6,Paulynn Park Check out the fish and bugs that live in Duffin s Creek, with the hands on Fish Station, Practice your fishing technique at the casting station, even try out the Fish run obstacle course Trout Unlimited Crayfish Craze August 20 th, Paulynn Park Crayfish Craze is a Free Family activity where participants are encouraged and offered instruction on how to catch crayfish by TU s Field Biologists. Crayfish like other water bugs are used to assess the health of our creeks and rivers. Community Planting Event September 12 th Westney Leash Free Park: 10 a.m.- 1 p.m. Community Tree Planting Event- come and help increase Ajax s urban forest, bring gloves and sturdy shoes we have over 1000 trees to plant! High school students can gain volunteer hours for their participation, this event will take place rain or shine! Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup September 19, 10 a.m. -12 p.m. Rotary Park Take a stand against shoreline litter! Help protect our most valuable natural resource and participate in the 2015 Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup. Pollinator Garden Planting September (Date to be confirmed), East of Veterans Point, Ajax Waterfront Help protect our pollinators by planting a pollinator garden along our waterfront. By planting these native flowers and grasses you are providing habitat for our butterflies and bees. High school students can gain volunteer hours for their participation, this event will take place rain or shine! For registration details visit sustainableajax.ca

31 2015 Projects Duffins Creek Pedestrian Bridge Maintenance - Town of Ajax Rotary Park Sun Shelter - Town of Ajax Waterfront Meadow and Pollinator Garden- TRCA Goose Management TRCA Duffins Wetland Project TRCA Paradise Wetland, Washroom/Changeroom

32 DUFFINS CREEK PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE MAINTENANCE Catherine Bridgeman 32

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34 DUFFINS CREEK PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE Built in 1995 in partnership with the Water Trust, Town of Ajax, TRCA and City of Pickering Important Link in the Waterfront Trail Current maintenance needs include re-decking, accessibility improvements and steel stringer repairs Planning for winter maintenance work to limit the impact of the bridge closure 34

35 Rotary Sun Shelter Catherine Bridgeman

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37 Rotary Sun Shelter The Rotary Park sunshelter is designed to create additional shaded seating opportunities for park users. The trail connection will provide an accessible link between the sunshelter, picnic areas, parking lot and the splashpad. The location of the sunshelter overlooks the splashpad &compliments the two picnic areas that are nearby.

38 Ajax Waterfront Meadow Katie Turnbull, Environmental Technologist, Restoration Projects, Restoration and Infrastructure, Toronto and Region Conservation Authority ex.5788

39 Why plant a Meadow? Increase populations of bird and butterfly species Establish native plant communities Reduce maintenance costs from mowing grass Improve walking trail experience along the waterfront

40 Ajax Waterfront Meadow

41 First Year: Mow and Till to Expose Soil

42 First Year: Oats are Growing

43 Year Two: Seed Wildflowers and Grasses

44 Year Two: Meadow Starting to Show

45 Year Three: Meadow Established

46 Diversity of the Meadow

47 Alto Meadow Restoration

48 Scarborough Centre Butterfly Trail

49 Community Garden

50 Benefits to the Waterfront

51 Habitat Requirements Butterflies Nectar producing plants Host plants for eggs Shelter from high winds Wet muddy pockets Birds Open ground for nesting Berry producing shrubs Structural habitat

52 Butterflies are year round residents or migrate south during the winter Viceroy Black Swallowtail Monarchs Butterflies are the second biggest pollinators next to bees Red Admiral

53 Meadows Support Pollinators

54 Eastern Bluebird Eastern Kingbird Red-winged Blackbird Yellow Warbler Bobolink Tree Swallow

55 Community Involvement and Habitat Projects 2,700 wildflower plugs to be planted 3 workshops on pollinator gardens or vegetable gardening Installation of pollinator habitat and bird boxes 4 Benches to be constructed out of recycled Ash Trees

56 Goose Management Gord MacPherson, Senior Manager, Restoration and Environmental Monitoring Projects, Restoration Services Division, Toronto and Region Conservation Authority.

57 Canada Goose Management Program Waterfowl counts on the waterfront Resident population control programs (egg oiling) Relocation efforts across the GTA Goose Behavior Research Studies Habitat Modification

58 Egg Oiling Program Rationale Population management technique Effective on a site specific level Eggs are thoroughly coated with Daedol 50 oil (100% Biodegradable product) Prevents embryo development Goose stays on nest past egg laying window

59 Canada Goose Egg Oiling Program

60 Relocation Program Most goose human/wildlife conflicts are encountered during the moulting season; During this phase both an abundant food supply and access to water are required waterfront parklands Geese will congregate by the 1000 s Since 2007, the TRCA initiated relocation efforts within the City of Toronto, City of Pickering and the Town of Ajax 2010, the City of Brampton was included in the program

61 Canada Goose Relocation Program

62 RESIDENT URBAN CANADA GOOSE STUDY Other nesting females have been marked with green and white collars with a unique 4 digit code. These collars allow researchers to recognize individual birds and monitor their movements and behaviour throughout the year.

63 Migration C0027 Mar 17 th Dec 14 th Dec Collared June 13, 2013 at Centennial Park, Toronto Departed GTA December 14 th, 2013, migrated for 3 days, spent winter near to Taylorsville, NC. Mar 16 th Mar Returned to area around Centennial Park on March 18 th, 2014 (roof top nester) Dec 17 to Mar 11

64 We encourage the public to report any individuals with a neck collar. When reporting a neck collar, please provide the following information: Date of Observation: Location of Observation: Please be as specific as possible (Street address, Lat/Long, Name of the park). Colour of the Neck Collar: Code on the Neck Collar: Did the goose have goslings? If would like to report a Canada goose with a neck collar and/or would like more information regarding this project, please contact Chris Sharp (christopher.sharp@ec.gc.ca).

65 Duffins Wetland Project- TRCA Gord Macpherson

66 Duffins Marsh Restoration Ontario Power Generation Pickering Nuclear Authority Meeting, April 26, 2013.

67 Duffins Creek 1999

68 Duffins Marsh 2009

69 Least Bittern

70 Muskrat Lodge Densities (Feb. 2013)

71 River Otter

72 Duffins Creek Concept Plan

73 Carruthers Marsh

74 Paradise Park Wetland Restoration

75 Paradise Park Wetland Restoration

76 Paradise Park Wetland Restoration

77 Paradise Beach Washrooms Catherine Bridgeman

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79 Planning Process Catherine, Kevin & Gord

80 Detailed site investigation Schematic design phase (To build upon the initial Conceptual Design created during the development of the Shoreline Improvement Strategy). Public consultation of the Conceptual Design (To obtain feedback from community members to to inform the Detailed Design). Refine the Conceptual Design into a Detailed Design Site Plan Approval Process

81 Questions