Why is JCRA conducting a Community Centre Survey?

JCRA wants to ensure that the neighbourhood has a voice in critical decisions that are being made about the re-development of lands. Before final decisions are made on the Hospital Lands, Chisholm, Brantwood and Linbrook school lands and the re-development of Centennial Square we need to be clear about what our neighbourhood wants. These development decisions will impact on community services that we use and the character of our neighbourhood and downtown core.  We are losing community gathering spaces and the investment in facility and lands will be decisions the next generation has to live with. The time to speak up is NOW if we want to have improved community services for our neighbourhood.

Completing the survey takes 2 minutes (The JCRA Community Centre survey) and will help us understand if  a community centre is important to you; preferred location, usage, services and suggestions on how to address financing it. The survey helps us be clear about what is important to you, so we can work with the Town to achieve what will benefit our neighbourhood.

Why has Southeast Oakville not had a community centre built here before?

When our community was developed many years ago development fees did not exist nor did the concept of a community centre. In fact in the early days of Southeast Oakville, door to door collections supported the development of schools and the hospital or Service clubs sponsored them like the Lion’s pool. Additionally when ideas like community centres came along there was very limited land available. With the pending changes to the Hospital and school closures land is available.

The Town has built Glen Abbey, River Oaks, Iroquois Ridge and Sixteen Mile Creek community centres using development fees collected as part of infrastructure growth north of the QEW. These development charges according to the law are not transferable to other neighbourhoods. However our tax dollars are used to cover a portion of the centres being built as development charges can only account for 90% of the cost. Additionally our taxes support the ongoing operating and replacement costs for the community centres yet to use them we have to drive significant distances contributing to air quality concerns and traffic congestion.

What if we don’t want a community centre and prefer to use a private facility?

The survey asks if you and your family would use a Town Community Centre. If you wouldn’t then that is important for us to know.