Waterworks Park, the first in St. Thomas, was developed around city's water treatment plant
By PATRICK BRENNAN TIMES-JOURNAL

There's a new way to beat the heat in St. Thomas and best of all, it's free.

The city took the wraps off the splash pad at Waterworks Parks Monday as a crowd of delighted youngsters played in the background, oblivious to the speeches and ribbon-cutting ceremonies.
The splash pad, which replaced an aging wading pool and old water fountain splash area, was built for $275,000, with the federal, provincial and municipal governments each chipping in $91,750.
Funding from the top levels of government came from a Recreational Infrastructure Canada (RIC) program, explained Ross Tucker, director of parks and recreation for the city.
St. Thomas Energy also paid the city $150,000 for naming rights to the splash pad for 20 years, Tucker added.

A splash pad is considered a better investment for a park than a pool because it's cheaper to operate, Tucker advised.

It requires less maintenance and no lifeguards to supervise children who use it, he noted. And, unlike a pool, the water does not have to be heavily chlorinated.
"The water flows directly from this splash to the reservoir," he noted.

"My daughter has brought her kids down," said Dorothy Hoffman. "There's more shade here than at Pinafore Park. You don't have an overwhelming number of kids like you do at Pinafore Park."
Hoffman said not all children like to use a public pool.

"A lot kids were unsure about swimming in the pool."

Waterworks Park evoked fond memories for those who spoke at the opening.

Steve Peters, Liberal MPP for Elgin-Middlesex-London, said he spent many summers there as a boy.
"It's the oldest park in St. Thomas," he noted. "Keep it like it is, don't commercialize it."

"It's wonderful to be here in a historically-designated park," added Mayor Heather Jackson-Chapman. "A lot of us who have grown up here have fond memories of this park."
Conservative MP Joe Preston said infrastructure grants from programs like RIC play an important role.

"These are the types of things that matter to a community," he stressed.

The area around Waterworks Park was developed for the city's water treatment plant. Approximately 25 acres of the parcel was set aside to be used as a recreational park.

The first splash pad in Pinafore Park was built with Rotary Club of St. Thomas funding.

Like the newest addition at Waterworks Park, it replaced an older wading pool.