Two preliminary concepts presented to Lac La Biche County council for upgrades to the Lac La Biche Recreation Grounds and McArthur Park have left the municipality's mayor looking for another pitch.
In both cases, the main Lac La Biche baseball diamond — affectionately referred to as Dodger Stadium by Mayor Omer Moghrabi in reference to the long history of the Lac La Biche Dodgers baseball teams — has been removed. The main diamond is one of two baseball fields currently within the recreation grounds. As one of very few communities with a large recreation area in the middle of its prime downtown real estate, Lac La Biche's elected officials have regularly examined new ways to present the area. The latest plan has been put together with an emphasis on leisure.
In either version of two concept plans put together by Sherwood Park-based consulting firm RC Strategies, and presented to elected officials last week, the ball diamonds aren't part of that leisure. In either of the two plans, the diamonds are replaced with a day-use picnic area, a winter skating pond, space for a "community holiday tree", green space, walking trails or a toboggan hill.
Consultant Rob Parks said a survey for the entire area was conducted with 327 people responding. Of the respondents, 40 said they had not visited McArthur Park in the last year. Of the remaining survey respondents, Parks said the beach area, gazebo, walking trails and splash park were the most frequently used areas over the last year. The survey showed the ball diamonds had been used by just under half of the respondents in the last year. The baseball areas, according to the survey, had been visited more times over the last year than the museum and visitor centre, the picnic shelter, the equipment rental area and the beach volleyball courts.
No baseball contact
Along with the survey, Parks said his company spoke to several user groups and stakeholders with links to the community and the recreation area. Representatives from a local antique society, local cadets, the Pow Wow Days Association and residents of the neighbouring Lakeview Crescent residential area were canvassed. Parks admitted that despite several attempts, there had been no discussions with the Lac La Biche Minor Baseball Association.
Defending the removal of the diamonds, Parks said it was an opportunity to differentiate the area as more of a community gathering spot and leisure location, rather than a sports-themed location. He said the survey also showed a preference by respondents for themes of passive leisure, nature and ecology, or arts and entertainment. He also said the concepts take the lead from the recent multi-million dollar investment in sports fields, including baseball diamonds, near the Bold Center, Parks said, "the idea is to enhance the Bold Centre as the sporting area."
In 2018, the current county council approved the removal of the third ball diamond that had been on the recreation grounds. That area is now used as green-space and houses a seasonal beach volleyball court. Of the two remaining diamonds, the bigger main diamond is where the mayor is focusing his fight.
Historic oversight
"This ball diamond is over 100 years old," he said, passionately defending the sports fields as a significant part of the local historic fibre. "The whole area is a very unique piece of property that has historical significance with how it is set up,"
The recreation area, he said, has long been a gathering area for generations of people dating back to early Indigenous settlement. In more recent history, the land was designated by Oblate nuns in the early 1900s as community space for health and well-being.
While the idea of change and adaptation is good, said the mayor, history is equally important.
"I know that people don't like change — but you have to know from where the hell you come from to know where you are going," he said, later apologizing for his strong and passionate defence of the land.
Lac La Biche County councillor Sterling Johnson also sees the importance of nostalgia in plans to move forward.
"The ball diamond is part of our community. You don't really care whose playing, you might be driving by and you see a game, so you stop by for half an hour — it's always been a focal point," said Johnson who also agreed a new version of the plans should be drawn up with the main ball diamond in place. "Part of this is the nostalgia."
Councillor George L'Heureux is also in favour of keeping the nostalgia, and the ball diamond, alive in new plans going forward.
"This piece of land has been a gathering spot for our community for thousands of years," he said, listing a history that includes Indigenous gatherings, tourism dating back to the early 1900s and the order of Grey Nuns who promoted health and well-being.
Having a baseball diamond in such a prominent location within a community is an asset, not a hindrance, said L'Heureux.
"What better place to play your final game than downtown Lac La Biche in McArthur Park, overlooking the lake?"
How does it fit?
If the ball diamond is added back to the future plans, it's large footprint will mean that something has to come out — and that has other community leaders concerned.
"We asked for a plan that showed leisure," said councillor Jason Stedman, explaining that sport and recreation opportunities can still exist at the new Bold Center sports fields. "We just spent millions on recreation at the Bold."
Looking at the concept plans that show space for winter skating trails, all-season walking paths, seasonal markets, a performance stage, adventure playgrounds for older children, indoor programming space, public art installations and a skatepark or bike track, Stedman says the baseball diamond doesn't fit.
Councillor Lorin Tkachuk said the ball diamond issue is challenging.
"I just don't know how we are going to work it back into the plan," he said, suggesting a third concept plan should be drafted.
Councillor Darlene Beniuk said she could support keeping the ball diamond as a feature of the new plan, but she questioned other aspects of the concepts, including the survey.
"I think 327 is a very small percentage of what we are saying is 9,300 in our municipality. I wouldn't base all the ideas here on just the 300 that were surveyed," she said.
The municipality's recreation manager says a lot of the concept information comes from the recently approved Recreation and Parks Master Plan. The 2019 document contains many of the ideas outlined in the most recent concepts for the park grounds, said Darrell Lessmeister. The recreation boss went on to explain that in his experience with creating and updating existing recreation areas, change is always a difficult hurdle to overcome.
"Change is hard," he said, explaining that the area has already seen significant changes in recent years, from the removal of a lakeshore road through the area in the 1990s to the trail system, splash park and removal of two previous baseball diamonds and a slow progression from active recreation activities to more passive leisure opportunities. "People eventually do embrace it."
Calling it a "high-level spacial exercise" with a lot of small details, Lessmeister says more details can be ironed out before more public consultation is collected.
Parks said that based on the conversation about the ball diamond, his office won't be ready with any final concept plan yet.
Council accepted the presentation. A third version of the plan is expected to be viewed by council in the coming weeks.
