Shear Park Gets A Community Garden, First of Six

Ontario Trillium Fund Grant Makes New Addition Possible

Barrie is getting its third community garden at a city park, and Shear Park gets the honour. Monday night’s meeting of council saw the approval of this greenspace at the park, and could mark the first of six new gardens.

City Hall is working with an organization called Urban Pantry on this one, a project under the Canadian Mental Health Association, who were able to secure a grant in early March for the construction of a new garden within the city. The grant money not only covers the construction costs of the Shear Park addition, but also the development of five more community gardens over the next three years. The money comes from the Ontario Trillium Fund.

Shear Park will join two others in the city in hosting a community garden; Sunnidale Park got one in 2010, while a garden grew in Golden Meadow Park in 2012.

Garden plots are rented at the rate of $20 a year for single plots and $50 a year for double plots. The gardens are consistently fully rented every year.

The Shear Park community garden would be located between its tennis courts and softball field.