New Canaan committee hears residents’ plans, schedules site walkthrough for Kiwanis Park

The Kiwanis Park Master Plan Committee in New Canaan reviewed deed and lease limits on park uses, heard a series of resident and user-group aspirations for improvements, approved the minutes of its previous meeting and agreed to a site walkthrough at the park.

Committee co-chair Keith Ritchie opened the meeting by reviewing historic documents and leases that, he said, restrict the park to recreational uses. Ritchie summarized an original conveyance that, in his words, limits the property’s use to “park and recreational purposes only.” The committee then heard detailed wishes from neighbors, the YMCA, the preschool and other regular park users on items such as trail improvements, erosion control, restroom upgrades, flood mitigation and maintaining quiet hours.

The discussion matters because the committee is preparing a master plan that will map what activities and facilities are appropriate where on parkland that is partly in a flood-prone area, and because several long‑standing leases and user rights (Girl Scouts, a community nursery school and the YMCA) could limit what changes are feasible.

Committee business and next steps

The committee voted to approve the previous meeting’s minutes; members said the motion carried with nine affirmative…