City of Edmonton seeks suggestions on how to improve Gallagher Park

It’s an iconic bit of green space, nestled in the heart of the Cloverdale community, that’s also home to the Edmonton Folk Music Festival, and now the city wants Edmontonians to weigh in on how to make Gallagher Park even better.

On Wednesday, an online survey will be launched to gather input “to help create concept options for the future of Gallagher Park.”

The survey will accept responses for two weeks.

READ MORE: Edmonton Folk Music Festival wraps up after sunny, smoky, soggy weekend

Edmontonians will also have the opportunity to give their feedback in person on how the park could be re-imagined at a drop-in public engagement session being held Wednesday at the Cloverdale Community Hall. The consultation session will run from 4:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.

“Gallagher Park plays a pivotal role in the river valley parks system,” the city said in a news release issued on Tuesday. “It provides a venue for year-round recreation, leisure, sports and festivals in the core of our city.

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“Folk Fest, winter activities and a visit to the Muttart Conservatory are all part of the Gallagher Park experience.”

WATCH BELOW:  It was a mixed bag of weather for those in attendance at the 2018 Edmonton Folk Music Festival.

1:16 Edmonton Folk Festival wraps up after sometimes sunny, sometimes soggy weekend

Three years ago, city council decided to come up with “a collaborative approach” through which to develop a 20-year vision for the park and established a project team and steering committee, which include city staff and “external site partners.”

“Initial public and stakeholder engagement will begin in late 2019 and will be ongoing throughout the planning process,” the city says on its website. “The complete process will include an analysis of opportunities and constraints as well as public engagement on the vision, programming and uses of the park.

“The process will consider the existing inventory and use, the goals of all partners invested in the site, the priorities identified by the public, all applicable standards and regulations and the strategic goals of the city.”

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This month’s consultations with Edmontonians are only the first phase of planned public engagement.

In the summer, a second round of consultations will look more closely at concept design options, and in the fall, the city will “present a final draft” of the preferred concept design and get feedback from Edmontonians.

Then, “a final concept plan report will be used as a guide for the future of the park,” the city’s website says.