The City of Burlington has released a list of finalists as it works toward renaming Ryerson Park.
There are four proposed names on the short list including Truth and Reconciliation Park, Unity Park, Head of the Lake Park and Sweetgrass Park.
The city says the finalists have been selected from over 500 public submissions.
Residents can vote for their preference until Nov. 19 at getinvolvedburlington.ca/renamethispark.
City staff will compile the voting results and present a recommendation to Burlington City Council in early 2022.
The city says the park is being renamed out of respect for Indigenous residents, particularly following the recent discoveries of unmarked graves at former residential schools.
Egerton Ryerson was instrumental in the design of Canada’s residential school system.
The Halton District School Board (HDSB) is also in the process of renaming Ryerson Public School on Woodview Road in Burlington.
The proposed park names and rationale:
– Head of the Lake Park: This name was chosen to reflect the name of the current land agreement in place that allows settler communities to occupy the location of the park in question, as per the Mississaugas of the Credit First Nation.
– Unity Park: When forms of hatred and attempts to divide people are on the rise, we need to find ways of expressing what we think is important. Unity means that we embrace our differences and that we value other people’s experience and beliefs.
– Truth and Reconciliation Park: To heal as a nation, we need to speak the truth and reconcile our relationship with the Indigenous peoples of Canada.
– Sweetgrass Park: Sweetgrass is used as a purification medicine in ceremony to purify ourselves and to heal.
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