The City of Burlington is reaching out to residents for input on the future community centre that will be located at the former Robert Bateman High School building on New St.
With plans already in motion to house a Brock University satellite campus (the Teacher Education program has already moved to Burlington, at the former Lester B. Pearson High School building in the interim), a branch of the Burlington Public Library, and with space for the Halton District School Board and the City of Burlington to offer services, the city is now asking what more people might like to see inside the building in terms of “recreational and cultural services.”
A number of opportunities to participate in “visioning” for the new community centre will happen across the city starting this month. Registration is required for some of these events, as listed below.
Aug. 22, 7 to 9 p.m. Appleby Ice Centre, 1201 Appleby Line. Registration required.
Aug. 23, 1 to 3 p.m. LaSalle Park, 50 North Shore Blvd. Registration required.
Sept. 16, noon to 4 p.m. Food for Feedback. Central Park, 2299 New St. No registration needed.
Sept. 24, 1 to 5 p.m. Appleby Street Festival, Appleby Line between New Street and Fairview Street. No registration needed.
Oct. 18, 7 to 9 p.m. Tansley Woods Community Centre, 1996 Itabashi Way. Registration required.
Oct. 19, 7 to 9 p.m. Online engagement session. Link to join is at getinvolvedburlington.ca/bateman-highschool. Registration required.
To register, email getinvolved@burlington.ca or call 905-335-7777, ext. 7965. Please include the date of the session you’d like to attend.
Residents can also submit their picks for the name of the new community centre, by filling out a survey on the Get Involved Burlington site with their suggestion and the reasoning behind the name (click here to submit a community centre name). The city will accept name submissions until 11:59 p.m. on Sept. 18, 2023. A short list of names will then be chosen and presented to the public; the next step will be for residents to vote for their favourites before submission to City Council for final approval.
A call has also gone out for any community service providers to register their interest in exclusive space and long-term rental at the former high school building. No commitment is required at this time, though the deadline for these expressions of interest is Sept. 20, 2023 (click here to fill out the form). The next step will be a formal bidding process expected to happen in 2024, with services to open to the public in 2027.
