Mayor Poirier defends Coney Island playground

Mayor Andrew Poirier is defending the money being spent on the Coney Island Playground.

Council approved a tender with a company called Blue Imp for just over $714,138.15.

Poirier says the city has been criticized on social media for the cost of the project.

“Yes, (it’s) taxpayer dollars from a provincial perspective, so, we had funding guarantees from the NOHFC (Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation),” Poirier told city council this week.

“But we also have a service club out there doing a lot of heavy lifting to raise money to participate in the cost of this project.”

The Kenora Rotary Club is committing $66,000 towards the cost of installation of the playground.

Poirier adds the new Coney Island playground has been on the city’s books for years.

“This is something that has been discussed for a lot of years. There were other investments to be made in the community…Central Park…we’ve done an abundance of work on Keewatin Beach…Norman Park. We’ve been piggybacking with other service clubs…Garrow Park.”

The City of Kenora says it is also updating the walkway from the boardwalk to the playground, enabling easy access for mobility devices and eliminating the need to navigate through grass or sand.

(Photo: rendering of what the Coney Island Playground will look like)