Our Association was inspired to look at revitalizing Peter’s Path trail when we became aware that a child in a wheelchair was unable to take part in the Kelly Park summer camp guided hike on Peter’s Path because the deterioration in the trail made it unsafe. This 334 m natural tree-lined linear greenway dates, which dates to the mid-1800s, was a historically significant transportation corridor to the community church and the former fishing stages at nearby Outer Cove beach. It is now a wet, overgrown trail that is difficult to walk, or traverse using strollers and wheelchairs. Revitalizing the outdated trail will provide a safe and vibrant public route to access the Town’s Kelly Park, the community garden, church, and school. We held discussions with our Town Council between the fall of 2020 and the spring of 2021 and they were eager to partner with us as we sought funding from various provincial and federal agencies. The upgrade will remove any accessibility barriers to any resident with physically challenging issues. Although unsuccessful in the first round of funding with provincial and federal agencies in 2021, we have again applied for funding under the provincial Community Healthy Living Fund, and, if successful, work will commence in the spring of 2022. This project will be part of our fundraising activities in 2022. Your gift will have an impact on the completion of this project - Donate Today!
The revitalization of the 2 m x 334 m trail will begin with restoring the 2 m clearing width. All overgrowth of grass/organics and other obstructions will be removed. A clearing height of 2.4 m will be restored with the removal of tree branches overhanging the trail and the cutting down of a few partially fallen trees. Whenever possible, the foot-trail-through-the-woods character will be maintained. For the wet areas on the lower 84 m of the trail, a small drain along its length will be installed to deter water from encroaching onto the trail. Heavier drainage (class B/4 inch minus gravel) material will also be added here to the trail bed to stabilize it. Then the whole walking surface of the trail (~1.5 m tread width) will be resurfaced with a stabilizer aggregate consisting of 50-75 mm thickness of ¼ minus trail-specific non-slip granular material. Attention will also be paid to keeping a sustained slope of less than 10 degrees, which together with the stable trail surface, will allow physically challenged individuals to access the trail while preventing water pooling on its surface. Designing the trail so that it requires little maintenance is of utmost importance for long-term sustainability. The 7–10-day project will be carried out under contract to a landscape company and overseen by our Association’s engineer in consultation with the Town Manager.
