Rural recreation in HRM usually starts with a long drive

HALIFAX, N.S. — For many people living in rural HRM, if they want to go for a swim or a skate, it’s at least a 45-minute drive.

And even if there are recreation opportunities within a walkable distance, with no sidewalks or transit, getting there is pretty impossible without a vehicle.

Rural recreation opportunities outside urban and suburban areas are sparse but a strategy with 60 actions attached aims to change that.

Diane Levandier, area manager with recreation programming, presented the long-awaited Rural Recreation Strategy at the Community Planning and Economic Development Standing Committee on Thursday.

She said it’s a vision for rural residents toward “equitable and ample access” to recreation services and assets.

Coun. David Hendsbee (Preston – Chezzetcook – Eastern Shore) said he was happy to see this and it was long overdue. It came out of report recommendation released in 2017.

Some of the 60

The 60 actions are categorized into themes, including equitable access and supporting volunteers. There is a five-year timeline, but most actions are in the one- to three-year zone.

Highlights include:

• Get better/more access to schools for recreation activities.
• Explore additional transportation options to meet the needs of rural residents.
• Find opportunities for repurposing existing indoor spaces.
• Boost opportunities for safe walking.
• Establish swimming lessons and lifeguarding in rural outdoor locations.
• Ask the province to allow access to provincial parks year round.
• Virtual municipal fitness classes.
• Run the recreation van year round in the most remote communities. 
• Pilot an equipment-lending program for items like paddle boards, wetsuits, small boats and adaptive equipment.

Coun. Lisa Blackburn (Middle/Upper Sackville – Beaver Bank – Lucasville) said she was glad to see that one of the main themes is on improving communications, which is a particular challenge in rural areas where the internet is spotty. She said she also approves of the recommendation to use schools as recreation spaces. Going through Halifax Regional Centre of Education (HRC) can be difficult, but it’s a good strategy, she said.

But Deputy Mayor Cathy Deagle Gammon (Waverley – Fall River – Musquodoboit Valley) said she was worried about using schools because the cost of renting gyms is prohibitive for many non-profit community recreation groups.

Needs to move faster

Rural recreation improvements need to move faster, said Coun. Pam Lovelace (Hammonds Plains – St. Margargets) because it’s such an important issue for residents. She said it’s important to understand how far people have to drive to get to a recreational facility.

From a survey mentioned in the report, 831 respondents (37 per cent) said they are not willing to drive more than 15-30 minutes to get to a recreation activity, while 696 (31 per cent) are not willing to drive more than 15 minutes. Nearly 20 per cent of rural respondents said they want to swim year round in a pool but feel it’s not possible because of the travel time.

Lovelace added that francophone residents are looking for activities in French, which wasn’t adequately addressed in the strategy.

Better data and an accurate picture of the inventory is needed, said Coun. Patty Cuttell (Spryfield – Sambro Loop – Prospect Road). Details are key, she added, as “recreation facility” could mean a chunk of land people don’t even know is a park.

There are 93 publicly owned indoor facilities in rural HRM (outide the urban/suburban tax boundaries) that are currently used or could be used for recreation. Three are operated by the municipality. There are also libraries and 27 schools, with access ranging from “standard to non-existent,” staff wrote in the report.

At the meeting Thursday, the committee altered the plan to have staff report progress annually instead of after three years and voted to recommend it to Halifax regional council for approval.