Presenting the Westlake-Evans Civic Park and ‘Track to the Future’ Mural Project
On Thursday, June 11th, our team at young & free press announced an extraordinary donation of $750,000 from the Estate of Donna Vera Evans Bushell to the City of St. Thomas. This contribution includes $500,000 to support the establishment of the new Westlake-Evans Civic Park downtown, as well as $250,000 to boost the ‘Track to the Future’ mural project that will be coordinated through Railway City Tourism. We are very excited to help St. Thomas take another step toward becoming a major street art destination in Ontario.
The park will transform the site of the former Colin McGregor Justice Building next to the St. Thomas Public Library in the downtown core. Ron Koudys Landscape Architects have developed an impressive concept design for the space. The new park will feature an outdoor classroom and play area for children, a baby grand piano housed in a weatherproof structure that will be available for public use, and three outdoor table tennis tables! Trees and gardens will be planted, too, and pathways will be added. The new park is intended to be an active community hub for all ages and will offer much-needed recreational space in the heart of the city.
Concept design for the new Westlake-Evans Civic Park in downtown St. Thomas by Ron Koudys Landscape Architects. The new park will be located just east of the St. Thomas Public Library.
Recognizing the push for creativity and the love of art that continues to grow in the community, the Estate has supported the ‘Track to the Future’ mural project with the goal of activating urban spaces. The project was initiated in 2019 by the St. Thomas Economic Development Corporation, through Railway City Tourism, and began with several ‘boxcar murals’ in the railway corridor along with an impressive ‘Wings’ mural by world-renowned artist Kelsey Montague. With many works of art already spread around the city, the additional funding will build on this momentum by supporting several new landmark murals.
Front and centre in this photo is artist Evond Blake — discover his work at https://www.mediahstudio.com … Evond is one of the artists installing a new mural as part of the ‘Track to the Future’ project in St. Thomas, which will include transforming this entire alley downtown into a ‘futuristic forest’. Joining Evond, left to right, are Emily Stage, Andrew Gunn, Maddie King and Madison Comfort of young & free press.
“Around the world, communities are embracing public art in new and exciting ways, driving traffic to traditional downtowns and expanding social media reach through street art. I truly can’t wait to see what this project will do for our community and I’m confident that it will give all of us another reason to be #stthomasproud,” noted Sean Dyke, CEO of the St. Thomas EDC.
Beyond our social media work and partnerships with private companies and government organizations, our team at young & free press function as consultants alongside owner Andrew Gunn through his consulting firm, Andrew Gunn Consulting Inc. This gives our team of teenage staff members the opportunity to provide ideas and develop special community projects! As the consultants on the Estate of Donna Bushell, Andrew and our teenage staff member, Maddie King, have taken the lead on announcing the donations – ultimately, more than $2.5M will be allocated to support a series of fun and innovative projects in St. Thomas and Elgin County!
Another terrific aspect of the donation is that Railway City Tourism will collaborate with the Forest City Film Festival to put out a call to emerging filmmakers in the region to submit proposals to make a short documentary about the ‘Track to the Future’ project!
The new park will be started later this year with completion expected in 2021. Similarly, the mural installations will begin in summer 2020, and more will be added next year. Our team at young & free press has partnered with the Elgin St. Thomas Community Foundation to develop these projects and arrange the donations to benefit the Elgin County and St. Thomas area.
Notes on the Estate of Donna Vera Evans Bushell
Donna Vera Evans Bushell passed away November 9, 2019, in her hundredth year, the last of her family. Donna’s passion was to plant trees and reminisce about her ancestors and friends while her sister Doris Evans taught music as a church organist. The oldest sister, Thelma Joiner, taught elementary school around Aylmer for forty-five years and researched local North Yarmouth history. All three sisters shared a love of their heritage as descendants of the pioneer Westlake, Penhale and Gilbert families who settled along the North Edgeware Road in Yarmouth. Their collected historical papers will eventually be deposited in the Elgin County Archives. Recently, the Bushell Estate provided funding to the Catfish Creek Conservation Authority to construct the new environmentally-friendly “Evans Sisters’ Stage” at Springwater Forest, and to the Kettle Creek Conservation Authority to establish the new “Evans Sisters’ Water Trail” at Dalewood Conservation Area. Both projects have been designed in memory of Donna, Doris, and Thelma, and for the enjoyment of local residents and visitors to the community. The Estate has also contributed toward the enhancement of the St. Thomas Elevated Park, and provided funding to the St. Thomas Elgin Public Art Centre to introduce the new ‘Art, Trees & Trails’ project.
Donna Vera Evans Bushell passed away in November 2019 in her hundredth year.
Notes on the St. Thomas EDC and Railway City Tourism
Established in 1957, the St. Thomas Economic Development Corporation is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors and is one of the oldest such organizations in Canada, serving the City of St. Thomas with the mission of improving the quality of life for all citizens of the community. In 2013, the EDC and the City recognized that Tourism plays a large role in achieving that mission, which led to the creation of Railway City Tourism.
Notes on the Elgin - St. Thomas Community Foundation
The Elgin - St. Thomas Community Foundation helps people to support local charities in the Elgin County and St. Thomas area in ways that are simple, convenient, and long-lasting. Through building and managing endowed funds and providing grants, the Foundation focusses on improving and enhancing our communities – the places where we all live, work, play, and raise our families. More information on the Foundation is available online at www.escf.ca
