Beth Downey has lived near Opa’s Park in Niverville for many years and has seen the greenspace become periodically neglected and misused. When she started to wonder who to contact about the park, she realized that she herself could step up.
“The brainwave came last spring,” Downey says. “I was walking through Opa’s Park… and thinking about how it was not living up to its potential. It’s kind of a wasted space at this point, which is just sad because it used to be a great park and a great greenspace.”
From that original germ of an idea has grown a three-phase plan to restore Opa’s Park to its place as a true gathering place. Plans are in the works to ensure that it includes a natural greenspace that can be used as an outdoor classroom as well as provide opportunities to learn about Indigenous culture.
Realizing she wouldn’t be able to do this on her own, Sawatzky began reaching out to potential collaborators. She started with her sister-in-law, Alexa Sawatzky, who conveniently is a recently certified horticulturist.
“Alexa has the foundational awareness and ecological background needed for this transformation,” says Downey.
Next up, she reached out to Shirley Hoult of Niverville’s Communities in Bloom committee. Communities in Bloom gave the project their stamp of approval. Downey says that Hoult came on board as a “project mentor.”
The Steinbach Area Garden Club has also provided valuable ideas.
Before delivering an official proposal to the town, Downey and her team sought to procure local letters of support. Many business leaders, neighbouring property owners, and other residents endorsed the project.
“I went door to door, and the amount of enthusiasm and flood of support was mind-boggling,” Downey says. “The amount of support from local business partners has been unreal!”
Downey says that William Dyck & Sons, Valley West Landscaping, and Pizza 311 have all pledged material, financial, and/or logistical support.
On top of this, Downey says she has received plenty of grassroots support.
“Cheques have literally shown up at my door from people wanting to donate to this project,” she says.
There was so much financial support, in fact, that Downey says the town had to open a special bank account to hold the donations, even while the project was still pending approval.
Phase One
The first phase of the restoration project has now been approved and should be completed and planted by the end of September this year. Phase one will include the planting of something which the team calls a native prairie garden.
“We’re planning on installing a native prairie garden to attract pollinators and bring awareness to local plant species,” says Alexa Sawatzky. “The native prairie habitats of Manitoba are in decline and we want to shine a light on the importance of this diverse ecosystem.”
This initial phase will also include a sensory pollinator garden.
“It’s meant to be a feature for children’s exploration, where the plantings feature different shapes and colours and heights and textures, and even plant talents in terms of what some of these species can be used for,” Downey explains about the unique feature. “It will be a series of concentric circles of plantings with paths that you can wander down to go in and explore and touch and smell.”
“We plan to plant medicinal, edible, and lovely smelling plants, all of which will be perennial,” adds Sawatzky. “This means they’ll come back every year and will require less maintenance than an annual garden.”
The pair say that the new and improved Opa’s Park will be geared to give every visitor something to see and do. The paths will be wide enough to accommodate a wheelchair, and the play features will all be wheelchair-accessible.
The park will also include a natural timber obstacle course. Downey says this will consist of a walking trail with various objects along the way for visitors to climb over or under, or just to explore in whatever way children find natural. She posits that this will be another feature that makes the park ideal for all ages.
“This creates an intergenerational sort of play experience that expands the park’s utility to the whole community,” Downey says.
Another idea involves installing low boards around the existing basketball court. With these boards in place, the court could become an ice rink in the winter. Although Niverville has a number of excellent rinks, due to high demand they tend to be tightly scheduled.
She imagines that the rink in Opa’s Park will be free to access for anyone who just wants to lace up their skates and go.
Subsequent Phases
In a subsequent phase, the team hopes to get an especially interesting piece of play equipment: a new type of swing that allows a child to swing, in their wheelchair, with a walking-capable friend. This is expected to be a draw from people living in nearby communities.
Although the second and third phases are not yet set in stone, Downey and her team already have big plans.
“We hope to disperse some hardy fruit trees throughout, and add some fruiting vines along the fence line,” says Sawatzky.
Phase three will include an educational tipi that Downey is particularly excited about. She has reached out to leaders in the local Indigenous and Métis community for co-leadership.
“If this is going to be an outdoor classroom where children come to learn about stewardship of the earth, the hereditary knowledge and right to teach of our Indigenous people must be prioritized,” says Downey.
A few other ideas being considered include a found object music wall, devices to help kids learn to understand the weather, and community garden beds.
Stewardship
Downey says they have worked out a plan for long-term maintenance and oversight of the park. The Opa’s Park Stewardship will consist of three honorarium positions funded by the town of Niverville, as well as volunteers.
The first position is the communications person/learning groups liaison, who would facilitate access for classroom visits and sign up people who wish to use the garden boxes. For now, Downey herself holds this position.
The second position, currently held by Sawatzky, is the greenspace overseer.
The third position will be a volunteer coordinator.
Park Background
The namesakes for Opa’s Park—opa being the German word for grandfather—is William Dyck, founder of William Dyck & Sons in Niverville. William and his wife Anna donated the land for the park. A stipulation of that donation was that the land must always remain a park.
William and Anna’s eldest daughter, Emily Fast, passed away in 2021 and her family asked that, in lieu of flowers, those who wished to celebrate her life donate to a fund to beautify Opa’s Park. This request was taken to heart by many who mourned Mrs. Fast’s passing and nearly $12,000 was donated to the fund.
Downey says that when she was younger, she wouldn’t be able to help herself from wandering into Mrs. Fast’s extraordinary garden.
“Sometimes, with the sheer childish gall of little people, I would knock on her door and say, ‘Could I pick some flowers from your garden to bring home to my mommy?’” Downey says.
Not only would Mrs. Fast agree, but she would go outside with Downey and teach her about the garden. When they were done learning, Mrs. Fast would clip some flowers for Downey to take home to her mom.
“[Mrs. Fast] invested in my early experiences of love and understanding of nature that grew later on,” says Downey. “I’m sure she had no idea how impactful that would be.”
Downey’s team plans to name the sensory garden in Opa’s Park after Mrs. Fast.
“Environmental advocacy usually begins with early experiences of enjoyment and understanding,” she says. “When you understand nature, when you spend time with nature, you build a relationship with nature. Then you care and then you protect it.”
Opa’s Park lies just to the north of Roselawn Bay. It can be accessed through walking trails from Roselawn, from Edelweiss Crescent, and from the Niverville Commons business park.
“The park is not a dead thing,” Downey says. “It’s not just a square on a map that somebody owns or a bargaining chip in terms of municipal policy. It’s alive. It’s a community of organisms that’s part of the earth that we live on and it provides services to our community. It has served our community for such a long time and it holds legacies for people… and it needs to be honoured. We hope that this project will both honour the park and serve the community.”
