Trails plan for Vaughan, King sure to please hikers, bikers, horseback riders

YorkRegion.com
April 9, 2015
Adam Martin-Robbins

The Toronto and Region Conservation Authority hopes to implement a multi-million dollar plan for a network of trails that would enable hikers, bikers and horseback riders to explore one of the “most picturesque” areas of Vaughan — and King Township.

The $3.3-million plan, dubbed the Nashville Conservation Reserve Management Plan, encompasses about 820 hectares (2,000 acres) between King Road in the north, Nashville Road in the south, Hwy. 27 in the east and Hwy 50 in the west.

It calls for the creation of nearly 25 kilometres of trails, about half of which would be multi-use, while the other half would be solely for hiking.

The plan also includes a major “trail hub” at the corner of Huntington and Kirby roads that would serve as a gateway to several trails and would include a large, 30-car parking area as well as comprehensive signage.

At a total cost of about $2.7 million, the proposed trail network, parking, signage, lookouts and other trail-related projects account for the bulk of the management plan’s costs.

The remaining $600,000 is slated for archaeological surveys and reports, management and monitoring of invasive species, dealing with erosion, planting maintenance and so-called “near-urban” agriculture projects and public gardens, among other things.

TRCA purchased most of the land, which includes the main branch of the Humber River and several tributaries, in the 1960s and 1970s.

But little has been done with one of the city’s most picturesque areas in the last 50 years, according to Adam Dembe, a planner with the conservation authority

The conservation authority wants to get moving on the management plan, begun in 2007 but later shelved, given the significant amount of development slated for the area including the Hwy. 427 extension, the GTA West corridor, two natural gas pipeline projects and thousands of new homes, Dembe said.

Design and construction of the trails is to be rolled out in three phases and could take seven to 12 years to complete.

That timeline, however, hinges on the TRCA securing funding support.

The conservation authority intends to seek funding from King Township, Vaughan as well as local community groups and other stakeholders, at some point.

King council has already endorsed the plan. The Region of York council will be asked to endorse the plan in the coming weeks.

Vaughan councillors also pledged their support for the plan at a committee of the whole meeting Wednesday. But the majority of council members made it clear to TRCA representatives, given the city’s fiscal challenges, they’re not willing to provide any funding, at this time.