DNR Targets Laurie Park for Re-Development

Grand Lake (D2N) – Laurie Park, the provincial park located along Grand Lake, will soon be undergoing some major changes. But, says an employee of the Dept. of Natural Resources, they are positive changes, intended so that the park is up to accommodating all of today’s campers.

Developed in 1961 on land donated to the province of Nova Scotia by the Laurie family, Laurie Park was developed with a camping area on one side, and a picnic area on the other. It is open between June and September for the summer, but it is widely used during the off-season by local residents who enjoy walking there in the spring and fall, and cross-country skiing during the winter months. A number of those park users voiced concern when they heard rumours circulating that Laurie Park was going to be cleared of most trees, and turned into an RV-only paying park.

Although there is some truth to the rumours, not all of the information currently going around is correct. The Parks Division of Natural Resources in Debert is working to come up with a plan for the revamp of Laurie Park.

A total of 2.4 million dollars, coming from both the provincial and federal governments,   has been allocated to do work on the provincial park, according to Harold Carroll, the Director of Parks for DNR. “We have 126 park properties,” said Carroll, “Laurie Park is one of four Nova Scotia parks approved for work. It is going to be re-developed in its entirety.”

Carroll cited a few of the reasons for the remodelling of the park. “We get a variety of visitors,” he said. “The camp sites are small, it’s a 1960’s campground; our intention is to bring it up to today’s standards. There will be new campsites, a central washroom with flush toilets, and showers. We have to bring it up so the current equipment used by campers today can be accommodated.”

Surveyors have been at Laurie Park for the past couple of months. “We are currently in the process of collecting base data,” said Carroll. “There is not a huge amount of property, the park is approximately 30 hectares. We have to see what the land-base can sustain.”

Carroll said there is a lot of thought going into planning the re-development project. “We need to know what type of camping experience people want. We know part of the draw to come to Laurie Park is Grand Lake, so we are looking into connecting the park to the lake, in a way that is complimentary to each other. That is the place we are at right now. We have planners who are developing a concept plan, it’s very general.”

The Director of Parks said he is confident that people will continue to be able to walk in the park free of charge, just as they do now. “We are looking to incorporate walking in the design. The land base is not very large, but we are looking at maybe putting in connector paths between the paved roadways where people walk.” The planners are also considering adding “walk-in” tenting spots, where people park their cars and walk to the private camping site. We have no intention to change the walking use,” said Carroll, “and no direction to make any changes in the fee structure.”

Carroll could not say whether there will be any area left to allow for day-visitors who stop in for a picnic and a swim. “As I said, the land-base is small, and we may not have enough land for that, but Oakfield Park is nearby, and it has an area for people wanting to picnic during the day.”

A number of regular park users were at Laurie Park on Oct. 6. Throughout that day, between morning and suppertime, more than 50 people stopped in for a stroll; some walked their dogs, a few pushed strollers, and even a cyclist was there to bike through the picturesque park.

“So many of us like to come here and use the park to walk during the off-season,” said Liz Curren, who was accompanied by her dogs Brackley and Rebel. Curren said she enjoys the peace and tranquility of Laurie Park. “It’s a great place to walk, alone or with your dog. You can see by the number of people here this morning that it’s well-used by dog owners. It’s beautiful, and I think it would be a shame to see the trees cut down. Oakfield is awful for walking. I don’t like it at all.”

Ernie Gillespie was on his bicycle. “I think if they closed the park to people who walk here, well, that was not the original intent of the park. It would be criminal. This park has been a refuge for more than 40 years.”

“Yes,” agreed Judy Jones, who was out walking with her husband. “The girl guides, the cub scouts, they all come here. What about them?”

Sharon Bowers was also out walking, with her four week old daughter Matilda and her dog Trevor. Bowers likes the idea of being able to walk Trevor when she takes her baby out. “Where Matilda goes, Trevor goes,” she said.

Residents will get the opportunity to voice their opinions before any work takes place at Laurie Park, which will be closed for next season. Carroll said he will be announcing a public meeting in the next month or so. “We are in information gathering mode right now. We will be holding a meeting, and we will be inviting people in to see our information. We are hoping to draw community interest. This will be taking place soon. The project has to go to tender by early spring. We are looking for input so we can build on the experience of camping, so the park can accommodate a wider range of users.”

Watch District 2 News for current news on the situation, and for times and dates of the upcoming meetings.