Twenty hectares of land on Maple Grove Road in south Bowmanville will become the new location of an outdoor sports and events venue.
The announcement has been a source of excitement for residents, especially those involved in the Bowmanville Rotary Club.
Last year, they had to cancel Ribfest, one of their largest fundraisers, due to construction at a local community centre.
“It takes a little tiny piece of your soul,” says Adrian Foster, the mayor of the Municipality of Clarington. “We want to bring people together. We want people to have fun.”
Although they were still able to raise over $100,000 through hosting several other events, more space is needed to host the “growing community,” says president of the Bowmanville Rotary Club Rebecca Grieve.
The Rotary Club is an entirely volunteer-based organization dedicated to giving back to the community through fundraising efforts.
Grieve says in the past they struggled to make available spaces work, as the current options are not specifically made for big events such as Ribfest.
“Jenga-ing into place, tetris-ing it in. When you have a space that’s, like, this is all it’s meant for doing, I just see so many possibilities.” – Grieve
Foster expects to break ground within the year but the development itself may take longer.
“These are multi-year projects,” he says. “I don’t think anyone should expect to wake up tomorrow and find that we’ve got a park that has all that.”
Once the municipality has a better idea of what is possible, he says they want to get the public involved.
“That’s a really important part, to make sure that we actually give people what they want and need.” – Foster
Some of the primary concepts include a sanctioned tobogganing hill, a cricket field, soccer fields and a covered stage for community events and concerts.
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