Southwest borough unveils revamped Ignace-Bourget Park
It took years of digging and building, but Ignace-Bourget Park's facelift is now complete and people in the Southwest borough are ready to enjoy it again.
Tuesday evening, the borough inaugurated the newly revamped green space.
Nikki Giulietti, who grew up in the neighbourhood, is now raising two boys a few minutes away from the park. She remembers a time when the park, which is in Ville-Émard, was a place to avoid.
"It wasn't really appealing, because kids used to be here and there was graffiti and it was sort of dirty and, you know, [I was a] little bit hesitant to come to park," she said.
The four-hectare park is now loaded with activities.
It features new soccer and softball fields, a basketball court, a bocce court, a splash pad for children and Montreal's first disc golf course.
The city and the province spent more than $5 million dollars on the project — money well spent, according to Giulietti.
"It helps bring back the community [and] the kids back to the park — outside, instead of inside on iPads and TV. So when the park is appealing, kids want to come."
Borough Mayor Benoit Dorais said the borough started saving up years ago.
"We invested, maybe, every two years in the park, and we started in 2010."
The park also has new lights as a safety measure and a way to prevent graffiti and vandalism. At the cost of $1 million, the lighting was paid for by the provincial government.
