(Town of Sylvan Lake)

By Sheldon Spackman

Lakefront Strategy Approved

Lakefront strategy approved for Sylvan Lake

Mar 12, 2020 | 6:00 PM

More beach area, lake access improvements, and a new public dock and boat rentals location are among the plans proposed in a Consolidated Vision for Sylvan Lake’s waterfront.

On Monday, Sylvan Lake Town Council approved the Lakefront Usage Strategy which outlines elements of the lakefront to be enhanced, maintained, or changed for improvements.

With a number of mixed uses and potential conflicts between people and boaters along the lakefront, officials say the Town of Sylvan Lake required a study that looks at current use patterns, usage requests from private businesses, and possible future uses as identified in the Sustainable Waterfront Area Redevelopment Plan (ReImagine Sylvan) 2018.

Officials say the Consolidated Vision for the Lakefront project follows up on recommendations within the (REIMAGINE) Sustainable Waterfront Area Redevelopment Plan, with the end result being a functional study of the lakefront that encompasses a water usage strategy and a land use strategy to identify usage zones within the lakefront area.

The functional study and identification of usage zones form a Consolidated Vision for the Lakefront, which Town officials noting is a condition of the Recreation Lease Application the Town is submitting for the Provincial water lease.

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Ground Cubed Planning from Calgary was contracted to complete the Consolidated Vision for the Lakefront study (Lakefront Usage Strategy).

Ground Cubed completed its comprehensive review of current uses and preferred uses to complete the functional study, with those findings presented to town council on Monday.

Existing features to be continued in the lakefront strategy include the sand beach, retaining wall, rock wall, lakefront park, park spaces, parking and public transit, while others include mobile vending, washrooms, a swim line and informal mooring.

A number of issues were also identified. They include the lack of a public marina, lack of a public dock with a short-term mooring area, a defined long-term mooring area, the need to further separate motorized boating activities from non-motorized boating activities, and a limited amount of sand beach.

Others include the need for additional washroom facilities, lack of barrier-free access to the lake, need for an additional boat launch, and additional parking and public transit.

Opportunities outlined in the report suggest improved access to water, an additional swim line, expansion of water play features, a re-programming of Sylvan Lake Park, and the re-programming of Lakefront Park.

(Town of Sylvan Lake)

Town officials note the 2020 Budget has approved $250,000 to begin the first phase of the Implementation program.

Now that the Strategy has been approved, officials say administration will identify the items within the Short Term Implementation plan to be implemented.

However, the implementation of the Strategy will still require the Provincial Recreation Lease to be approved by the Province in order to move forward.

The lake and the land adjacent to the lake (parks spaces) were previously held by the Province of Alberta as Sylvan Lake Provincial Park.

In 2018, the Province of Alberta divested the Sylvan Lake Provincial Park to the Town of Sylvan Lake for the purpose of a municipal park.