In 1974, the City of Ottawa established both the Jack Purcell Community Centre and park, aptly named after the 1933 world badminton champion. It was a development that was highly beneficial for Centretown residents; the park expanded green space for students at the Elgin Street Public School and the centre allowed for increased community gathering and programming.
Almost 40 years later, the area has left something to be desired. Pushed behind a Starbucks and otherwise surrounded by apartment buildings, the small patch of nature is almost cancelled out by its commercial environment. The few ash trees that remain in the park are expected to soon be wiped out by the ash borer beetle.
In the centre of it all, the remnants of a baseball diamond provide a stark contrast to the otherwise busy tennis court and enclosed dog park.
This is soon expected to change. Last year, Somerset Coun. Diane Holmes announced plans to revamp the dog park. The city plans to coat the asphalt with decomposed granite (to absorb pet odor and bacteria) as well as to provide additional park seating and pet fountains.
Residents and local businesses have also come together to create the Jack Purcell Park Project, a community effort to redesign the location. Their work allowed for five new maple trees to be planted in the area earlier this month.
Project co-ordinators are currently raising funds to build a state-of-the-art play structure that will be accessible to children with disabilities. The new structure will provide a safer alternative to the current playground, which residents say is more than 20 years old.
Thanks to these developments, a more vibrant future lays ahead for Jack Purcell Park, ensuring it will remain a community staple for many years to come.