Public Meeting Over Expanded ATV Use Of K&P Trail

Jeff Green | Jul 12, 2023

The normally sleepy July meeting of the Frontenac County Planning and Economic Development Advisory Committee attracted a crowd, at the Verona Lions Hall, last Wednesday morning.

The reason for the extra attendance, which prompted a change of venue for the meeting, was a “Public Meeting” on a proposal by Verona ATV Club President Marc Moeys, to extend ATV access to the K&P Trail south to Harrowsmith from the current southern boundary at Hardwood Creek in Verona.

A steady, relentless stream of people, many wearing goldenrod Friends of the Cataraqui Trail T-shirts with “Volunteer” written on the back, expressed their opposition to the proposal.

The first to speak was not a Cat Trail volunteer, however.

John Abrams represents both the past and the present in Harrowsmith. His family has roots in both the Sydenham and Verona areas, and is tied in with the history of gospel music and agriculture in Frontenac County. He also began his own musical career with his father, grandparents and brother James at the Thomson Hall in Snow Road over 20 years ago. He said that he grew up with ATVs, and still rides on his grandparent’s farm.

He also said that he moved to Harrowsmith with his wife in 2019, seeking an affordable house and property where they could raise a family, one of many young families moving to South Frontenac. Noting that Harrowsmith does not have many places to walk because Road 38 runs through the centre of the hamlet, he described the trail as a haven for families with strollers, dog walkers, etc,

“I went door to door in Harrowsmith, with an open mind, to see what my neighbours think about ATVs on the trail, and of 23 households that I visited, 21 of them decided to sign a petition opposing the idea. The petition was signed by a total of 369 people online,” he said.

As mentioned before, the perspective of the Friends of the Cat Trail was well represented. Keeping illegal ATVs off the Cat Trail is a constant struggle for the “Friends” and for the Cataraqui Conservation Authority, which owns and manages the trail, and since the Cat and K&P trails share a section in Harrowsmith, they pointed out that they would need to approve ATV used on the shared portion, which is contrary to their non-motorized policy, with the exception of snowmobiles in the winter months.

Some of the speakers were also concerned that the ATV club would keep pushing for trail expansion onto the western portion of the Cat Trail towards Napanee, once they reached Harrowsmith.

Another complained that the meeting was being held in Verona and not Harrowsmith, which is the community that will be most impacted by any change. They asked that a second public meeting be held in Harrowsmith, in the evening, to allow for those working in the daytime to attend.

Marc Moeys clarified his club's intentions by saying they were not planning to go beyond Graham Road, at the north end of Harrowsmith, before the co-managed section of trail.

“We just want to be able to ride south from Verona, go to Gilmour's, access the pizza shops in Harrowsmith, things like that. We have no further ambitions,” Moeys said. He added that even though ATVs are permitted on all roadways in South Frontenac, he does not consider it safe.

“I would ride them myself, but not with my granddaughter,” he said.

He also said that, through the efforts of the club's trail warden program, the concerns of other users of the trail with shared use with ATV have been addressed in many cases.

ATV use of the trail was extended south from Craig Road (north of Verona) to the heart of the village at Hardwood Creek, beginning in May of 2020.

Originally a six month pilot project, the use has been extended, but even though the county and South Frontenac Township have invested in upgrading the parking lot at Road 38 and Hardwood Creek, no permanent decision has been made about the use.

A seniors housing project, on property bisected by the trail, is in the early planning stages and one of the issues being looked at is compatible uses of the K&P Trail through that property.

South Frontenac Mayor Ron Vandewal said that he “is not pro or con” to the proposal, but pointed out for those who say the trail is the only safe place to walk in Harrowsmith, that the township has a five year plan to put in new sidewalks in the village. As for the claim by Moeys that township roads are not safe for ATV use, Vandewal said that he rides ATVs on township roads often, 14,000 kilometres over the last few years, and “has never had a close call yet”.

To complicate matters even more, Vandewal said that that electric powered bicycles (e-bikes) - bikes, which are increasingly popular, can get up to very high speeds, and in that sense can pose a risk to pedestrians on trails. 

A representative from the Friends of the Cat Trail responded by saying they are concerned about people on e-bikes, which are also banned on the Cat Trai, but often use it anyway.

Frontenac Islands Mayor Judith Greenwood-Speers, asked extensive questions of several presenters, and said at one point that an analysis of deaths and serious accidents associated with ATV use would be helpful.

“We should know all the risks,” she said.

Central Frontenac Mayor, and Deputy County Warden, Frances Smith chaired the meeting. After well over an hour of discussion, she pointed out that she does not remember the last time there was a reported incident associated with ATV use on the K&P trail in Central Frontenac, where motorised and non-motorised users have shared the trail for decades.

“It is not an issue in Sharbot Lake,” she said, “users seem to get along with each other pretty well.”

After the public meeting, the matter seems to be headed back to the next committee meeting, which will likely be in September. The committee may then make a recommendation to Council.

Judging from the overall tenor of the public meeting, and the position taken by staff in a report that was prepared for the committee, a committee recommendation to approve the expansion seems unlikely.