Monday night could see the end of a journey and the beginning of another for off-road cyclists.
Riders pled with Windsor city council to save a track they had built near east-Windsor's Ganatchio trail back in November of 2017.
AM800 file photo
The city elected to level the track due to safety and liability concerns, but council heard the community and decided to ear mark $500,000 to develop regulated off-road trails in 2018.
A professional design firm was brought in to work with the newly formed Essex County Trail Association with the goal of turning public input into a reality.
"They've been working with us by being out in the field with our staff and the consultant to come up with what the community really wants as far as the type of trails and the difficulty levels," says Parks and Recreation's Jan Wilson.
Wilson says members of the biking, hiking, and running communities have come together to work with the city to create locations in east and west-Windsor to match every skill level.
"They're going to work with us right from the construction and then ongoing for events, but also for ongoing care and maintenance of the facilities," she says. "I think that makes a big difference when you have a local organization that's willing to work with you and ensure that we're meeting the needs of the community at the same time."
She tells AM800 News the project will do more than add trails.
"There's lots of potential for programming to be done. So whether it's the community groups that want to do some events or city staff, we can look at doing that too. We can create some summer camps around some of the programs that you can do on these trails," she says.
If approved, Wilson says construction will begin on the first two phases immediately.
Work could be completed on a portion of the project by late summer.