Public invited to rank shortlisted names for former Ryerson Park

The public is being invited to rank their top choices for a new name for the park in Owen Sound that was formerly Ryerson Park. The city has opened a survey on its OurCity project page, where residents are being encouraged to rank their top three preferred names from a list of 25 that best [...]

Article content The public is being invited to rank their top choices for a new name for the park in Owen Sound that was formerly Ryerson Park. The city has opened a survey on its OurCity project page, where residents are being encouraged to rank their top three preferred names from a list of 25 that best met the criteria outlined in a city naming and re-naming policy for city parks and facilities. The name has been shortlisted from 70 unique submissions that were submitted earlier this year through the online engagement platform.

Recommended Videos The list of names and the survey to rank them can be found on the project page at ourcity.owensound.ca/park-naming The list of 25 names includes: 8th Street Common; 8th Street Park; Boyd Street Park; Commons Park; Dodem Park; East Ridge Park; Entity Park; Fifth and Eighth Park; Friendship Land; Heritage Park; Hillside Park; Hope Hill Park; Maple Tree Park; Mary’s Hill Park; Nana’s Park; Niisinaabe-ki (put forward by the SON Environment Office, and translates as “person lowered to the earth); Nipissing Ridge Park; Northern Star Park; Old Maple Park; Old School Park; Old Union Street Park; Reconciliation Collegiate Park; Regiment Park; Ryerson School Park; and Sydenham 8th Hill Park.

Survey participants are invited to view the shortlisted names and submit their rankings through the online platform up until Aug. 28. Feedback collected will help council better understand community preferences before making a final decision, the city said in a news release. Once the public engagement is complete, the top scoring names will be presented to the city’s community services committee with a final recommendation to be considered by council.

The city will provide at least 10 days notice before a final decision is made. Earlier this year, city council supported moving ahead with renaming the park at 823 5th Ave. E. after a working group was struck in 2024 to consider a citizen’s request to rename it.

The former Ryerson Park was a playground for the Ryerson Public School, which was converted to apartments more than 30 years ago. Both are named after Egerton Ryerson, an education superintendent of Upper Canada in the mid-1800s who is now considered by many to be an architect of Canada’s residential school system. The city removed the Ryerson Park sign in 2021, after receiving a petition signed by nearly 1,000 people to rename it.

At the time, there had been a discovery of what were believed to be children’s graves at a Kamloops, B.C., former residential school site that shocked many across the country.