Town council to support WEBC request

The Skills Park layout proposed by WEBC.

The new bicycle skills park the Windsor-Essex Bike Community (WEBC) wants will be the subject of a grant application to the Ontario Trillium Foundation. 

Town council agreed to send a letter off in support, but agreed the only area the letter will apply to is the skills park itself and not the trail system.

Councillor Don McArthur noted WEBC wants to put in the bicycle skills park at the Libro Centre to go with the trails they have already fundraised for and installed.

McArthur stated the group is trying to get upwards of $40,000 in an Ontario Trillium Fund (OTF) grant but the skills park is “for fixed cost funding, which means infrastructure that has to remain for a period of time.” He said WEBC needs a letter from the town saying the infrastructure at the bike skills park will be there for five years.

The deadline was last week.

“In order to get that funding next week, they need that letter from the town,” he said during the Feb. 23 meeting. “How can we get this done? Can we delegate authority to the mayor to draft this letter and give them what we need? I don’t want to leave $40,000 at Queen’s Park when we can use it to build a bike skills park here in Amherstburg.”

Clerk Kevin Fox said it sounded like McArthur was requesting a disposition of property, which would require public notice and a notice of motion. CAO Valerie Critchley said the land use agreement with WEBC says the town can cancel at their pleasure, and was of the understanding WEBC wants a commitment that won’t happen and guaranteed full use for five years.

“Council can do that, but you are definitely committing that land for five years but that is in direct contradiction with the agreement we have with them. You are giving up a right to end that use,” said Critchley. “You are committing definitely, regardless of what happens on those lands, an accident or any of those things, and you wanted to get out of that agreement, you are definitely committing you will not be doing that and they will have it for five years.”

McArthur said it is not the entirety of the land, only the skills park. He said he would even be in favour of a special meeting to get $40,000 “for the kids of Amherstburg.”

Mayor Michael Prue stated a motion could be passed that the CAO prepare a letter outlining what has been said and that would be sufficient.

Councillor Molly Allaire said wanted clarification on the lands being associated with the letter. Fox suggested outlining the skills park as a separate section and reference that specific section in the letter.

“I could convince myself to agree to just the bike skills section,” said Deputy Mayor Chris Gibb. “To commit all that area for five years, while I would love to do it, to do it without public consultation is a bridge too far.”

“They’re making the application for the bicycle skills section specifically so in my estimation, that would get the job done,” said McArthur.

Prue said the letter would “zero in” on the bicycle skills park and the letter would be signed by him and sent off.

Town council to support WEBC request

By Ron Giofu