TROWBRIDGE FOREST RECREATION TRAILS MASTER PLAN FAQ
With the large amount of public interest recently in the skills park and the trails located in Trowbridge Forest in general, we wanted to answer a few questions and address some concerns. The new skills park is one piece of a much larger project and that is the Trowbridge Forest Recreation Trails Master Plan. We want to provide some information for those that have not heard of this plan yet.
What is the Trowbridge Forest Master Plan?
The Trowbridge Forest Recreational Trail Master Plan is the official development and recreation plan of the City of Thunder Bay Parks and Open Spaces Section. It was developed in April 2017 and has been used to guide development activities in the area ever since. Extensive community consultations were conducted at the time as a part of the plan development. Blacksheep Mountain bike club was a partner in the plan’s development, providing some of the funding to develop it and raising other funds, however this is the City’s plan and not Blacksheep’s plan. The plan can be accessed here: https://www.thunderbay.ca/en/city-hall/trowbridge-forest-recreational-trail-master-plan.aspx
Who was consulted when the plan was being developed?
Extensive community consultations were completed at the time of the plan’s development. Details on the consultation activities can be seen in the final report. A community open house was completed in the current river area on March 6, 2017 and there was an online survey conducted from March 6th to March 13th 2017.
Is this a mountain bike specific plan?
No. The plan is intended to appeal to many different users of the park. With a few exceptions such as fast, downhill-specific mountain bike trails with one-way traffic flow, all trails are multi-use.
Who is paying for this development?
Once the Master Plan was completed, the Blacksheep Mountain Bike Club took the initiative to apply for provincial and federal grants to be able to complete the plan and were successful last year in securing the needed funds. Only 2% of the approximately $1.5M needed to complete the project are being contributed by the City of Thunder Bay directly. The project is being run through the City of Thunder Bay and they are providing in-kind services such as project management.
Most of the project grants were made possible by highlighting the huge potential for tourism in our area related to mountain biking. The goal is to turn Thunder Bay into a mountain biking destination for tourism and events. Once the development is complete, Blacksheep plans to try to host a major national mountain biking event and we expect the City could see 10,000 people per year visit our trails which is a great boost to tourism in the area.
As well, Blacksheep Mountain Bike Club has contributed nearly $250,000 to the project through membership funding and volunteer labour.
Does Blacksheep have any guidance on this project or are they just doing whatever they want?
All development activities are planned in conjunction with the contractor responsible for completing the work and the City of Thunder Bay, Parks and Open Spaces Section, who has final say on any development in the area. The Master Plan is guiding all activities and while some small changes are being made as the project progresses, such as orientation and small feature changes, the end result is expected to closely match the master plan.
Will there be a new playground?
The work at Kinsmen Park is being completed in phases. Next year, a shade structure and new playground are planned to be completed. Please see the master plan document for more information on the final product that is expected.
Why was the skills park located in Kinsmen Park?
The Master Plan calls for a world-class trail network and mountain biking venue to be located in the Trowbridge Forest area. This area has a long history with Mountain Biking in the area, which started in Thunder Bay with people building trails in the Shuniah Mines area in the 1990s when mountain biking was first developing as a sport. In the last 10 years, the Blacksheep Mountain Bike club has worked to legitimize our relationship with the City of Thunder Bay. This relationship is guided by the land-use agreement for trail development in the area.. The goal was to grow the sport in the area, but also highlight tourism opportunities for the City of Thunder Bay and surrounding region.
During the design phase of the Master Plan it was determined by Parks and Open Space that a new trail head for mountain biking was needed to separate users from accessing the trails through the Cabins at Centennial Park. Kinsmen Park was recommended due to its lack of use and proximity to the trails.
Development of Kinsmen park allows public access to the trails, which has resulted in an explosion of mountain biking in our region. Blacksheep Mountain Bike Club is now one of the largest amature sport organizations in the City, with over 500 active members. Feedback on our trails has been very positive this year as evidenced by data from our trail use survey conducted in late August and early September, which has shown our efforts to attract tourists to the area are gaining traction.
Why aren’t there more trail specific features in the bike park?
The winning bid submitted for the bike park identified that the park area was not large enough to support both jump lines and skills features, while still maintaining a large portion of the field for event hosting and other park use. The consultant recommended the area be used for the jump lines due to the available slope on the hill.
Future expansion of the area around Prospector Skills Trail will add in additional skills features for rider development.
The master plan shows a pavilion close to the playground, is this still the plan? If not, how come?
The final design will include a pavilion, but the final location is subject to budgetary restrictions and approval from the City of Thunder Bay Parks and Open Space.
Can I hike/walk on these new trails?
With the exception of posted downhill mountain bike trails (ie Hilltop) all trails within the park are multi-use. Hikers, walkers, runners and bikers must all share the trails.
What other sorts of impacts will this skills park have on Thunder Bay?
The skills park will create progression for riders to develop a variety of new skills including, but not limited to jumping, turning, and navigating a variety of technical trail features. The proximity to the trailhead allows this development to happen in a safer environment that allows easier access to emergency services in the event of an adverse outcome.
Are there any more projects Blacksheep has planned for Trowbridge Forest?
Currently there are no additional plans for Trowbridge Forest beyond those outlined in the Trowbridge Forest Master Plan, but Blacksheep Mountain Bike Club is always discussing with the City of Thunder Bay Parks and Open Space and it’s partners on any potential for future improvements.
