Mapleton council has decided not to act on a request for winter plowing of a portion of the walking trail through Wallace Cumming Park here.
On Nov. 24 Jim de Bock of the Alma Optimist Club presented council with the request.
De Bock noted the Alma Public School track and field team uses the trail on a weekly basis. He said local residents and groups, as well as visitors to the community, also use it regularly.
A staff report from CAO Brad McRoberts presented to council at the Dec. 8 meeting indicates providing the service at the Alma park would set a precedent for providing similar service levels in other communities “and the overall cost and implications need to be considered on this basis.”
The report notes there are about of three kilometres of trails in Mapleton, approximately 1.2km in Drayton, 0.5km in Moorefield and 1.3km in Wallace Cumming Park.
McRoberts estimates providing maintenance the entire 3km would require approximately three to five hours per snowfall. An additional two to three hours would be required for travel and loading/unloading equipment.
“Current resources would not be able to support this additional level of service,” he pointed out, suggesting at least the equivalent of one full-time staff member, either on-staff or contracted, would be required for each snowfall event.
Assuming 60 to 90 snowfall events, McRoberts estimated the cost at $36,000 to $86,000 per year. The estimate is based on cost of labour (assuming eight hours per event), equipment fuel and maintenance.
The report notes that if winter maintenance is undertaken, trails would have to be serviced regularly, not just periodically, “as any maintenance would imply liability.”
Also presented at the meeting was a letter from Alma resident Curt Oakes stating he believes plowing of the trails would be unnecessary.
“We don’t need it at all. The trail is too narrow to plow. It will result in gravel (being) chewed up and deposited on lawns that are adjacent to the trail,” Oakes’ letter stated. “People can find other places to walk in winter.”
Councillor Dennis Craven said, “I would think if we’re going to spend this kind of money … we’d probably be better off to spend the money on the sidewalk as opposed to the trails.”
Council approved the report’s recommendation to not undertake winter maintenance on township trails.
