Playground reopens more than a year and a half after contamination concerns forced closure

Kerent Saulog and her son play in the playground in the Verte Homesteader neighbourhood. (Matt Marshall/CTV News Edmonton)

Edmonton — A north Edmonton Park has been reopened after it was fenced off as a possible health risk to the public.

The playground and green space in the Verte Homesteader Neighborhood had been fenced off since 2019 after a worry about possible soil contamination.

The site had once been been home to the Domtar Wood Treatment plant, where toxic chemicals had been used treat lumber. The plant had operated from 1924 to 1987.

Local residents are elated to have most of the park back. Kerent Saulog was playing with her one-year-old son in the playground equipment and said she had been waiting for this day since the fences first went up.

“I'm kind of like, are they gonna open it or are they gonna like stay it closed, so when they open it and I got the letter I was shouting inside the house!” she said.

Most of the fences came down around the park on Friday, while a small section in the northern area is still fenced off for safety. Most of the land east of the neighborhood is still undeveloped and fenced off.