I trust that the Greater Vernon Services Commission, when considering the overhaul of Polson Park, will invite individuals to make suggestions rather than confine the invitation to what it considers "user groups" alone.

An overhaul is a great idea. Our jewel in the city is getting a little in need of polishing mainly because of the heavy use. It's a very popular park and beautiful despite the odd handful of blemishes which are location related. I believe individuals need to be consulted on the park because it is a park for individuals: families, picnics, strolls, exercise walks, play, simply soaking up the pleasures of the grand gardens and the ambience of it all. I frequent the park about three times a week with my wife and we both congratulate the managers and staff involved in the wonderful garden creations this year. We never tire of the displays. The clock is stupendous.

I do have my own suggestions for improvements.

For the life of me I can't see the sense in allowing traffic to circle the entire park. This results in a steady flow of vehicles that is both disrupting to users and polluting to the air, which is already assaulted by the heavy traffic near by on three sides of the park. I won't say dangerous because speed is generally controlled by speed bumps, but I won't eliminate the possibility because parking of vehicles is allowed along the road in many places, too much so in my opinion, creating tight situations.

I think it would be a simple matter to close the road to all but service vehicles (and the number of these could be reduced as well). Put gates at the tennis courts and at the bowling green and permit pedestrian and cycling traffic only. A small inconvenience for workers, but an easy one to bear. As for access for the handicapped, this park is so relatively small there shouldn't be an access problem from the existing parking areas via wheelchairs and minimal effort. Parking would have to be increased at the north end, but I'm sure the experts could plan that, even if the tennis courts have to go (they are not heavily used and take up a lot of valuable space, and there are plenty of courts throughout the city, or could be.)

On the overflow parking at the Polson Mall end, if this is still necessary, then the GVSC should set brains to working on how to arrange a road access to the park from the mall; not impossible despite the rail crossing. The road closure would be a major boon to the park allowing true freedom from traffic.

Something that dismays me in the park is the track and football field. They are both out of place since there is no longer a school there and their creation should be somewhere else. We don't need such an exclusive playing field in Polson Park and we certainly don't need a new grandstand.

This area should be turned into a general play area. What a great place it would be for the holding of festivals and fairs, which are becoming very popular in the park. Make this space available and the events will happen and the landscaping possibilities are endless.

Instead of a mindset on sports, think another way. Replace the idea of a grandstand with the possibility of a bigger and grander bandstand, or perhaps an amphitheatre, something that would be a constant attraction to families, which to me is the prime purpose of such a park. There could still be provision for storage and whatever is needed as a centre of operations for staff.

I do lean toward the calming influence of a non-sports park. It is, a small park, but it is a jewel for individuals, and there is just insufficient space for activities that leave most people out and fields that shut out the public with chain link fences.

John J. Clarke