The Community Garden Program was initiated by the City of Belleville Green Task Force in 2012. It gives residents a place to grow vegetables and flowers in designated parks. Anyone living in the Belleville area can apply. No special skills are required. The gardens include the Bayview Heights Community Gardens, the Ponton Park Community Gardens and the West Hill Park Community Gardens. Garden beds are awarded in March each year by lottery. Each name drawn will be assigned a garden bed and given exclusive use for the season (May to October). The program is free. Each garden bed provides 3.7 square metres (40 square feet) of growing space. Learn more about the gardens and the rules of the program and COVID-19 guidelines here. And, for Digital Doors Open, take a virtual tour of these community gardens here.

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Most of Belleville's drinking water is treated at the Gerry O'Connor Water Treatment Plant, located in the west end overlooking the Bay of Quinte. It operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week and treats 72 million litres of water daily, which is enough to fill Belleville's water tower 24 times over. Its distribution system serves over 40,000 residents and businesses every day through 224 km (139 miles) of water mains. Energy projects have been done at the plant. Old boilers were replaced with new models to reduce natural gas consumption. Roof insulation was upgraded to R18. And new solar energy products were brought online. Belleville was recognized as a leader in energy conservation in 2015 and 2017 by Save on Energy and Veridian, now Elexicon Energy. As part of Digital Doors Open, you can take a virtual tour and learn more about the Water Treatment Plant here.

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The Corby Park Rose Garden is in the old east village in Belleville, a great area for exploring heritage homes, just a few blocks from the Bay of Quinte. The garden has a stunning water fountain and at the centre of it all, you get a beautiful view of the entire garden – perfect for a family outing or wedding. The garden was donated to the city in 1905 by Henry Corby. It has received a significant makeover in the last few years, most recently in August 2016 when a spectacular fountain with water emerging from a giant artificial rose was added, along with new fencing and lighting. And hundreds of new roses were planted to replace ones that died off. Designs on gates, posts and cresting were specially done for the park. Doug Paterson (great-grandson of Henry Corby) was on hand for the ceremony in 2016. As part of Digital Doors Open, learn more about the Corby Park Rose Garden in the video below.

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Glanmore is an excellent example of Second Empire architecture in Canada. The home – now a regional museum – was built in 1883 for banker J.P.C. Phillips. Interiors feature ornate frescoed ceilings, suspended staircases and intricate woodwork. Even though the site is closed, there is much to see and do through Digital Doors Open. Explore their online collections (approximately 20,000 artifacts), watch a video about the restoration of the site, take a 3D tour (don’t forget your virtual reality glasses!), and discover the Canada at Play online exhibit (currently on loan from the Royal Ontario Museum), where you can also learn how to make a rag doll. Note: While Glanmore has reopened for paid visits (with mandatory face coverings and physical distancing measures in place), visitors are required to book a time slot in advance to visit the property.

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Join this unique tour of Belleville sites that have had new power systems installed and learn more about these renewable power sources – such as solar panels and new power systems. We start with the Meyers Pier and the Water Treatment Plant, which boast rooftop solar panels. Next is the Quinte Sports and Wellness Centre, which has both an extensive solar rooftop array as well as power converters that send AC back to the grid. In addition, the Centre uses Combined Heat and Power (CHP) systems – which produce both electricity and heat from a single fuel source onsite. In addition to reducing emissions, CHP systems also improve energy efficiency (up to 90 per cent in some locations), which also means lower costs. Finally, check out Belleville Transit, the Sewage Plant and the City of Belleville’s Human Resources building for more examples of renewable power sources. Learn more about CHP systems here. And, as part of Digital Doors Open, explore these sites – with their aerial views and photos.

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The Belleville Wastewater Treatment Plant is located by the Bay of Quinte in Belleville’s east end. It deals with wastewater that goes down drains in our homes, public buildings and commercial facilities. Wastewater travels through the city’s sanitary sewer system to the Water Pollution Control Plant at the same complex. Wastewater then goes through an extensive treatment process and is returned to the Bay of Quinte. Biosolids are used as fertilizer for agricultural purposes. As of 2020, city water staff have been testing a new odour-control product to break down and control sulfur compounds that can fill the autumn air surrounding the city’s wastewater treatment plant. A storm sewer is a pipeline designed to direct stormwater to a stormwater management pond or receiving stream or body of water. Stormwater is rainfall and melting snow that soaks into the ground or runs off surfaces into storm sewers and nearby waterways. As part of Digital Doors Open, learn more about this treatment plant here.

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