Elk Point town council had plenty of input Thursday night as they determined the priorities for their walking trail enhancement project. Each of the four councillors acted as moderator for a group of interested participants, as they studied maps and photos and listed their choices.
Mayor Parrish Tung started off the trail information night by saying that when MLA Ray Danyluk first suggested that the town apply for a large grant for trail development, “I told him, thanks, but no thanks. I couldn’t justify using the taxpayers’ money to match it. When we started talking about it, however, I found that the matching amount could be in kind, and we had five years to do it. With a little arm-twisting, I agreed to apply. Last year, we got the $500,000, but we didn’t do anything with it. I was uncomfortable spending it because it had to be matched, so we put it in one, two and three year term deposits. Then came the Municipal Sustainability Initiative funding, supposedly for 10 years. The first year was used for the fire hall, but after that we can put it toward this.”
With the funding in place, Mayor Tung said, “We’re not here for consultation. We’re here to set priorities. The councillors will present the possible projects, and when we determine what is first, we’ll do it. If there’s money left, we’ll do more.” He noted that residents had “some concerns. Some don’t want the back alleys paved,” for example.
At this point, he said, “We won’t be doing anything in (residential areas of) town. The three items we’ve listed are paving the Iron Horse Trail, paving 50 Ave. coming into town from the west, and stairs and a trail to the golf course. And another thing, for safety, street lights down 54 Street and up to the corner west of town on 50 Ave. That will probably cost $30,000 to $50,000, which leaves us $450,000 to spend. Only through your input can we make logical and cost-effective decisions. We’re not here to debate if, but how. I’m glad to have you here to help with this.”
The mayor reiterated that the project will not use taxpayers’ money, “and we’re not increasing any taxes to pay for this.”
Coun. Buck called the project “a great time to do a lot of in-kind work.” He is “happy with the concept” of trail development, because “It addresses what Elk Point people do. It’s no swimming pool, it’s affordable to maintain and we’re going forward.”
The time factor spurred the need for Thursday’s meeting, Mayor Tung said, because it is important to get an engineer on board and because he was to meet with MLA Ray Danyluk the following day and wanted to update him on the project.
Coun. Bernice Capjack’s group suggested improving the sidewalks along Railway Ave., paving the berm along 50 Ave. west of town, and installing directional signage.
Coun. Ron Fraess was spokesman for a group that listed ‘the loop’ as top priority, preferably with lights all the way around it, and stairs on both sides of the creek en route to the Elk Point Recreation Park. They felt the Circle Drive bridge should be repaired, and a No Exit sign installed at the end of a strip of land used as an alley leading off Ravine Drive. They felt that a possible bridge in the area known as Frog Pond was a very low priority.
Coun. Fraess said he also had one phone-in request, for benches to be located along trails for the convenience of users.
Coun. Dwayne Yaremkevich’s group would like 50 Ave. paved from Heritage Lodge to the county road west of town, they would like to see the bridge and stairs completed, the other three sides of the loop could be left as is, and the Iron Horse Trail should have dust control but otherwise be left as it is.
Coun. Buck’s group applauded the lighting and 50 Ave. paving, with third priority being fixing the surface but not paving the Iron Horse Trail. The stairs and improvement of 54 St. were also seen as worthy.
“At the next council meeting, this will be on the agenda,” Mayor Tung said. “It will be up to the councillors to champion your ideas. My vision is that next year, we will have a nice walking trail.”