21 meeting not to include paid parking as part of a se- ries of measures to better manage increased traffic and parking at the water- front parks, specifically Bronte Beach Park and Tan- nery Park. Council also decided not to pursue a resident parking permit program (where vis- itors pay for parking and residents enter for free with a permit) or impose a time limit on parking at these wa- terfront parks. One option would have seen fees of $3 per hour for a maximum of four hours. Council did vote to close all waterfront parks at 10 p.m., and ban parking at these locations during the 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. period. "The 10 p.m. closure does not preclude walking through the park," said Ha- nia Ellison, the town's man- ager of strategy and support services. "It also doesn't pre- vent being in the park for an approved activity ... If there is a vehicle there for a per- mitted use, it can remain in the park until that permit- ted use is concluded." Another bylaw amend- ment clarified that vehicles at the parks can only be parked in the parking lot or on the roadway. Ellison said that in 2020, when parking lots at waterfront parks got full, many people simply parked on the grass. Other waterfront park improvements approved by council include updating signage to reflect parking rules and the park's closure time, creating a temporary parking area at Bronte Ma- rina, and installing bike racks to encourage people to cycle to these parks. Oakville's waterfront parks have seen significant- ly increased attendance in the warmer months since the start of the pandemic. Town staff noted that be- tween May 1 and Sept. 30, 2020 there were 120,000 visits to Bronte Beach Park alone, compared to 68,000 during the same period in 2019. During council's discus- sion Ward 2 Coun. Cathy Duddeck pointed out that taxpayer money from all across Oakville went into the creation of these parks. She argued paid parking would put people in north Oakville at a disadvantage since people living closer to the parks could avoid the fees by walking or biking to the facilities. "I think we have to get away from the north vs. south or east vs. west, and all of us should come togeth- er and enjoy our parks," said Duddeck. Ward 1 Coun. Sean O'Meara voiced concerns that not enough is being done to deal with the large volumes of vehicles that are coming to the waterfront parks as the pandemic per- sists. He said he would have liked to have seen a better permit program option brought forward. The permit program dis- cussed by town staff would cost $350,000 to implement. George Niblock, presi- dent of the Oakville Lake- side Residents' Association, which covers the lakefront area from Navy Street to Chartwell Road, noted that while the group's board feels parking should remain free to access the parks and wa- terfront, something still needs to be done. "We have been hearing from residents that they are overwhelmed with the park- ing on our streets and par- ticularly late into the night from people accessing the lakefront parks," he said. "Many cars will idle late at night while the neigh- bourhood tries to sleep." Niblock called on the town to look at opening the parking garages in down- town Oakville for free park- ing 6 to 10 p.m. on weekdays and all weekend. He also called for the strict enforcement of street parking and noise bylaws. The town has banned street parking on roads ad- jacent to Bronte Beach, Cor- onation Park and Tannery Park from May 15 to Sept. 15. STORY BEHIND THE STORY: Oakville council has decided not to imple- ment paid parking at two popular waterfront parks and we thought residents should know why that decision was made and what the town is doing instead to manage traffic at these parks and on near- by streets. NEWS Continued from page 1 PARKING REAL PROBLEM ALONG WATERFRONT, SAY RESIDENTS SCAN THIS CODE for more local news. Left, Oakville councillors look at some of the inappropriate parking that was taking place in the town's waterfront parks in 2020. Coun. Sean O'Meara is among those who feel more needs to be done to address waterfront traffic and parking. Town of Oakville photo "I think we have to get away from the north vs. south or east vs. west, and all of us should come together and enjoy our parks." - Ward 2 Coun. Cathy Duddeck in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, Ju ly 1, 20 21 | 2 www.shoppersdrugmart.ca 2501 Third Line905-465-3000 478 Dundas Street West905-257-9737NOW OPEN24 HRS EVERY DAY • Patient Counselling • Complete Diabetic Care• Home Visits • Consultations • Free RX Delivery• Free Nutrition Counselling • Vaccinations• Cholesterol, A1C, AFib and DNA Screening lw ys Here toelp You! 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