Grimsby Recreational Trails Master Plan

A draft of the Town of Grimsby Recreational Trails Master Plan has been completed and is now ready for your review and commentary!

The master plan has been designed as a long-range strategic planning document which is intended to guide the monitoring, management, planning, design and implementation of recreational trail facilities and supportive programs / policies over the next 20 years. It highlights the current state of trails within the Town and aims to identify and prioritize potential trail improvement opportunities (both feasible and aspirational) to support future coordination, collaboration and innovation related to recreational trail improvements. The plan is not a commitment to specific monies or a prescriptive set of directives. It aims to provide flexible and adaptable tools and tactics to municipal staff with the aim of improving the integration of trails into day-to-day practice and processes.

We appreciate all of the insights and input that have been shard over the course of the project. We have diligently considered and responded to input received, built upon best and comparable practices and developed Grimsby specific tools and processes that respond to the opportunities and challenges related to recreational trails.

Please visit the Documents page to view a copy of the draft Recreational Trails Master Plan report.

Going forward, we will be:

1. Holding commentary period for approximately 30 days ending on November 27^th, 2023
2. Consolidating comments and questions and responding where appropriate.
3. Updating and finalizing the recreational trails master plan report and prepare a final update / presentation to Council / Committee

Thank you once again for your continued interest and involvement in this exciting project. We are looking forward to initiating the implementation of the plan starting in 2024 with new trail projects and programs being considered.

The Town of Grimsby Recreational Trails Master Plan project team is excited to be nearing the completion of our collaborative and exciting project. On Thursday June 22nd, a presentation was given to the Town's Community Services Standing Committee. The intent of the presentation was to provide an overview of the work completed to date on the Recreational Trails Master Plan, present the proposed recreational trails network, phasing and priorities and provide an overview of draft recommendations and next steps. We are excited to be moving forward with the development of the Recreational Trails Master Plan and look forward to presenting the report for potential adoption to Council in September / October 2023.

This update marks our final point of engagement and outreach regarding the Recreational Trails Master Plan. As we develop the master plan report and supporting documents we welcome your input on the proposed phasing, priorities and recommendations that form the basis for the plan. We will be seeking input until Friday August 18th..

There are a number of ways you can provide input:

1. Review the project update slides as presented to the committee on June 22nd.

2. Visit the documents page to download, review and mark-up the mapping to provide additional comments or considerations to the proposed network and network phasing / priorities.

2. Provide comments to the draft recommendations.

For any comments or questions please submit them to the project team at grimsby.trails@cima.ca

Note that this plan is a guide, a flexible tool that is intended to serve as the roadmap from which Town staff can monitor, adapt, seek internal and external funding and generally influence future recreational mobility through planning, design and implementation. A number of the proposed routes reflect ongoing planning projects being completed by Town partners including but not limited to Niagara Region. The recommendations and outcomes of these projects will be determined by processes and project outside of this master plan. There will be opportunities for future consultation on specific projects before they move forward, opportunities to highlight / explore other trail opportunities and continue conversations and coordination with municipal partners.

Thank you in advance for your continued involvement and interest!

Spring is finally in the air, that means its time again to get out on the trails and provide your feedback on future trails proposed as part of the Recreational Trails Master Plan (RTMP). Over the past few months, the RTMP team has been working at finalizing the RTP network. This has included reviewing and adapting our proposed trail network based on feedback heard at the second round of engagement and conducting further analysis on potential candidate routes in order to confirm the proposed recreational trails network, trail design solutions, implementation priorities and phasing.

On June 22nd, 2023, at 6:30 p.m. the RTMP team will be presenting a project update to the Community Services Standing Committee. We invite you to join this presentation either virtually or in-person to learn more about the project recommendations and to provide your input one last time prior to developing the recreational trails master plan report - which will occur over the summer. Come join us to finalize the Town's Recreational Trails Master Plan!

Happy new year from the Town of Grimsby Recreational Trails Master Plan team! It's 2023 and we're working towards finalizing the remaining pieces of the Town's Recreational Trails Master Plan (RTP). Since the second round of engagement, we have been working on :

1. East-West Trail Corridor - In June 2022 a presentation was given to council recommending that the RTP investigate an East-West trail connection parallel to the rail corridor as a dedicated (primarily off-road) trailway linking major destinations. We have undertaken detailed fieldwork and stakeholder engagement on this opportunity and have identified a spine corridor that will be integrated into the wider Recreational Trails Network.
2. Network Development - A preliminary draft trails network was presented in the second round of engagement. We have since updated the network to reflect the east-west trail alignment and additional routes to improve recreational trail opportunities and connectivity. The network has been designed and phased as part of the RTP process.
3. RTP Recommendations - a strong master plan should include recommendations that guide day-to-day decision-making. A series of recommendations related to trail planning, design, implementation, costing/funding, programming, maintenance, and management is being developed and reviewed in the context of Town capacity and feasibility.

The intent is to proceed with the remaining technical tasks with the intent of completing the Recreational Trails Master plan by Fall 2023 including a presentation to Town Council anticipated for May / June 2023 - all members of the public and stakeholder are welcome; please wait for further notification on the presentation date/time.

It is important to note that all formal engagement and outreach has been completed for this project. Information will continue to be shared and if you have any questions or comments please contact grimsby.trails@cima.ca.

Thank you very much for your continued interest and involvement! We look forward to working with you on the final components of the project!

A Recreational Trails Master Plan for the Town of Grimsby is underway. Your feedback is needed on the Draft Proposed Trail Network and corresponding design guidelines. There are a number of ways you can participate in this round of public consultation.

1. Review our Public Information Package #2 available under "Documents"
2. Watch our pre-recorded video that reviews the information package available under "Videos"
3. Visit the link provided to view our online collaborative whiteboard on Miro where you can find an overview of the project, the vision / objectives, considerations, a summary of the trail classifications, a summary of the trailhead classes, and a draft proposed trail network. On this platform you can provide comments by using sticky notes directly on the content to tell us your thoughts. https://miro.com/app/board/uXjVO6yTny4=/?share_link_id=159088187731
4. Find our viewing boards at key locations around the community. They will be available at the following locations starting April 27 running through May 19:
   • Grimsby Municipal Offices - 160 Livingston Avenue
   • Peach King Centre - 162 Livingston Avenue
   • Grimsby Public Library - 18 Carnegie Lane
   • Livingston Activity Centre - 18 Livingston Avenue
   • Waterfront Trail - at the east and west ends
5. Find us at community events. Members of our Project Team will be at the following events:
   • Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority Tree Planting Day - April 30, 2022 - Centennial Park
   • Raptorfest - May 4, 2022 - Peach King Centre
   • Community Safety Day - May 14, 2022 - Peach King Centre
   • Farmer's Market - To be confirmed
6. Provide your feedback to grimsby.trails@cima.ca. Have a question? Have some comments? Drop us a line – we are listening.

As you are reviewing these boards, we would like to you to consider the following questions:

• What do you want to see for the future of the trails in Grimsby?
• Would these trail types and amenities improve your trails experience?
• Does the Draft Proposed Trail Network address potential opportunities and barriers?

The Grimsby Recreational Trails Master Plan Technical Report #1 is now available for viewing. This report is provided for information purposes only as a 'snap shot' of the study progress, findings and engagement activities between the project launch in July 2021 and the wrap-up of Round 1 Engagement in November 2021.

The Project Team has used the foundations reflected in the Technical Report #1 to move into Phase 4 of the project - the development of the outline and initial recommendations. This material will be presented in Round 2 Engagement, just getting underway in April 2022.

We are now live for our first public information session for the Recreational Trails Masterplan!

If you would like to enter the meeting, please follow the below zoom link:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88150758779

Hope to see you in the meeting!

Join us at our first public event! TONIGHT, at 7:00 pm, the Town of Grimsby will be holding our first public information session for the Recreational Trails Master Plan.

We are excited to share and engage with you on:

• The work we have done to date on understanding trail related policies, programs, and practices in the Town.
• What we have heard from the initial engagement completed
• Our findings on the existing trail system and routing connections.
• Our assessment of the previously planned routes as well as potential new trail opportunities.
• Some trail planning and design considerations that we want to explore within the Town as part of a long-range master plan.

If you would like to participate and receive the presentation information prior to the public event, please sign up using the Let’s Talk survey: https://www.letstalkgrimsby.ca/grimsby-recreational-trails-plan/survey_tools/public-input-session

If you would like to watch the public meeting but not participate, the meeting will be streamed live on the Town’s YouTube Channel: https://www.grimsby.ca/livestream/

Location:

• Meeting Participants: Zoom.com (link will be sent on the day of the meeting – participants should register through Let’s Talk)
• To view the live stream: Town of Grimsby Youtube (https://www.grimsby.ca/livestream/)