Work will begin over the next couple of weeks on a new parkette in Windsor that will be home to a sculpture of Hiram Walker.
The parkette on the southeast corner of Riverside Drive East and Devonshire Road will include the sculpture of the founder of Walkerville, which is still home to the whisky distillery that bears his name.
James Chako, Senior Manager of Parks for the City of Windsor, says the parkette will include benches and lighting.
"Every parkette always has lots of greenspace and tree canopy, so that's what we're looking to incorporate. So you're going to see the statue and seating area will be framed nicely with trees."
Chako says everyone in the parks department is excited about this project.
"Ground breaking will take place in the next couple of weeks," he continued. "People will see activity throughout the Fall, and we will suspend operations through the Winter but pick back up in the Spring and certainly have the park done in time for the grand opening."
Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens says calls it a wonderful statue that's just waiting to be put on display.
"We're going to have this parkette ready, we'll have the statue up and we're going to have a big community celebration on July 4, 2022, which would have been Hiram Walker's 206th birthday," Dilkens said.
The city was hoping to unveil the $400,000 eight foot bronze statue at the corner of Riverside Drive and Devonshire Road in a roundabout in the summer of 2020, but those plans were delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The parkette and sculpture will be the first gateway to the Walkerville neighbourhood as part of the city's proposed Walkerville Theming and Districting Plan.