Creating a Regional Nature Park: A Case Study on Community Engagement in Developing the Mill Creek Nature Park in the Town of Riverview, New Brunswick

Authors

  • Daniel S. DeLong Dalhousie University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.5931/djim.v13i1.6924

Keywords:

Park, Community, Nature, Development, Engagement

Abstract

This paper explores the development and management of the Mill Creek Nature Park in the Town of Riverview, New Brunswick. The park is under-development on a 217 ha plot of land owned by the municipality on the eastern edge of Riverview. The site is unique due to its proximity to a rapidly developing residential area and the presence of a dam and reservoir (installed by the Canadian Navy in the 1950s). This paper investigates the Mill Creek Nature Park in the context of three development themes: inception, consultation, and materialization. The findings offer insight into the genesis of environment-based municipal projects, the importance of engaging community in the early planning-phase of park development, and the subsequent development process for the implementation of the park plan. Additionally, peer-reviewed literature is consulted to provide a brief overview of the value of green space and why the broader community should be involved in the planning and development of local parklands. The information highlighted in this paper serves as a valuable overview of the creation of a regional nature park in the context of New Brunswick, Canada and can provide insight into the early development process for other municipalities seeking to develop a park of a similar size and scope within their own communities.  

Author Biography

Daniel S. DeLong, Dalhousie University

Daniel DeLong is a first year Master‘s of Resource and Environmental Management (MREM) candidate at Dalhousie University. He graduated from Mount Allison University in 2015 with a Bachelor of Arts degree with a major in geography and a minor in English.

He currently sits on the development committee for the Mill Creek Nature Park, which is situated in his home community of Riverview, New Brunswick, and is the recipient of the 2011 New Brunswick Environmental Leadership Award for his contribution to the project. His current research interests are based around urban sustainability, community development, and conservation management.

References

Belliveau, P. (2014). H.M.C.S. Coverdale Riverview's Forgotten Naval Base. Moncton: Kingswood Military History Editions.

Brambilla, M., & Ronchi, S. (2016). The park-view effect: Residential development is higher at the boundaries of protected areas. Science of The Total Environment, 569, 1402–1407. doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.06.223

Calder, M., & Beckie, M. (2013). Community engagement and transformation: case studies in municipal sustainability planning from Alberta, Canada. Community Development, 44(2), 147–160. doi:10.1080/15575330.2012.705868

Chang, C.-R., & Li, M.-H. (2014). Effects of urban parks on the local urban thermal environment. Urban Forestry & Urban Greening, 13(4), 672–681. doi:10.1016/j.ufug.2014.08.001

Cohen-Cline, H., Turkheimer, E., & Duncan, G. (2015). Access to green space, physical activity and mental health: a twin study. Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, 69(6), jech–2014–204667. doi:10.1136/jech-2014-204667

CollabPlan & Genivar. (2013). Mill Creek Nature Park 2013 Conceptual Development Master Plan. Moncton, New Brunswick. Retrieved from www.townofriverview.ca/en/thingstodo/resources/millcreekmplan_final_web.pdf

Dahl, D., & Molnar, D. (2003). Anatomy of a Park Essentials of Recreation Area Planning and Design. Long Grove: Waveland Press.

Doelle, M., & Sinclair, A. (2006). Time for a new approach to public participation in EA: Promoting cooperation and consensus for sustainability. Environmental Impact Assessment Review, 26(2), 185–205. doi:10.1016/j.eiar.2005.07.013

Friends of Mill Creek. (2016a). Mill Creek Nature Park. Retrieved from https://www.facebook.com/MillCreekNaturePark/.

Friends of Mill Creek. (2016b). Terms of Reference. Riverview: Friends of Mill Creek.

GEMTEC, 2012. Draft - Condition Assessment Mill Creek Dam. Riverview: GEMTEC.

Niemela, J. (1999). Ecology and urban planning. Biodiversity and Conservation, 8(1), 119-131. doi: 10.1023/A:1008817325994

Proc, J. (2015). HMCS Coverdale. Retrieved from http://jproc.ca/rrp/rrp2/coverdale.html.

Proc, J. (2005). Coverdale Photo Album - Facilities (1). Retrieved from http://jproc.ca/rrp/rrp2/coverdale_photo_album_facility1.html.

Salmond, J.,Tadaki, M., Vardoulakis, S., Arbuthnott, K., Coutts, A., Demuzere, M., ”¦Wheeler, B. (2016). Health and climate related ecosystem services provided by street trees in the urban environment. Environmental Health, 15, 95-111. doi:10.1186/s12940-016-0103-6

Sander, H. (2015). Assessing impacts on urban greenspace, waterways, and vegetation in urban planning. Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, 59(3), 461–479. doi:10.1080/09640568.2015.1017041

Sklar, S., Autry, C., & Anderson, S. (2014). How park and recreation agencies engage in community development. World Leisure Journal, 56(4), 281–299. doi:10.1080/16078055.2014.958193

Toni, S., & Duinker, P. (2015). A framework for urban–woodland naturalization in Canada. Environmental Reviews, 23(2), 321-336. doi: 10.1139/er-2015-0003

Town of Riverview. (2015). Integrated Community Sustainability Plan. Town of Riverview, New Brunswick. Retrieved from http://www.townofriverview.ca/en/ourcommunity/Integrated-Community-Sustainability-Plan.asp

Town of Riverview. (2012). Town of Riverview Municipal Development Plan 2012 By-law No. 300-31. Moncton, New Brunswick: Moncton Planning Comission. Retrieved from www.townofriverview.ca/en/insidetownhall/resources/completeplanwithschedules.pdf

Downloads

Published

2017-04-06

Issue

Vol. 13 (2017)

Section

Articles

License

Papers published in the Dalhousie Journal of Interdisciplinary Management must be the original, unpublished work of the author. Contributors are responsible for obtaining any copyright clearances required in relation to their work.

Authors submitting a paper to the Dalhousie Journal of Interdisciplinary Management automatically agree to grant a limited license to DJIM if and when the manuscript is accepted for publication. This license gives permission for DJIM to publish the paper in a given issue and to maintain the work in the electronic journal archive. DJIM also submits issues to institutional repositories and Open Access repositories.

Contributors agree to each reader accessing, downloading, or printing one copy of their article for their own personal use or research. All other copyrights remain with the author, subject to the requirements that any republication of the work be accompanied by an acknowledgement that the work was first published in the Dalhousie Journal of Interdisciplinary Management and that the DJIM Editorial Chair must be notified of any republication of a work first published in DJIM.

Dalhousie Journal of Interdisciplinary Management
c/o School of Information Management
Faculty of Management
Dalhousie University
Kenneth C. Rowe Management Building
6100 University Avenue
Halifax, Nova Scotia B3H 3J5
Canada

Email: djim@dal.ca

Authors should recognize that, because of the nature of the Internet, the publisher has no control over unauthorized copying or editing of protected works.