Tracks, Trails, Tourism and Taking out the Trash

The trail choppers are back at it again. First it was the railroad that cut and slashed trees by the side of the walking trail along River Valley Drive in Grand Bay-Westfield. Now NB Power is cutting down trees along the other side of the trail beside the road. They're clearing trees and branches from under the power line that runs along the side of the road. I know they have to do this. Tree limbs that touch or could easily fall on a line are a hazard. But like NB Southern on the other side, why are they so eager to cut down the trees? Why can't they selectively trim the offending branches around the wires as I've seen them do on many other streets? Has no one bothered to ask them to cut judiciously along that stretch of road because the trees form an important buffer for the trail? On some stretches the trees have been cleared right to the road. We might as well pave the trail and call it a sidewalk. At least the cutters are cleaning up after themselves. Crews are following behind with a wood chipper to grind up the branches. But there is still plenty of downed brush that has to be dealt with.

NB Southern left everything it cut lay by the tracks all winter. In the spring the railway said it was going to clean up the mess and it did, to a point. A clean up was done on the southern section of the trail, for which everyone who uses it is grateful, but there are still tree limbs and branches strewn by the side of the tracks at the north end.

I was talking to a friend of mine who lives in the city the other day. He told me about going to the landfill and asking if you could still drop off old paint. He was told yes you can do it every Saturday but come early to avoid the long lines of people from Grand Bay-Westfield dropping off their weekly trash. He asked why are they doing that... don't they have garbage pickup? My friend couldn't believe it when he was told there was no garbage pick up in the town. He was even more surprised when he found out he was being told this by the new deputy mayor. He asked me how a town this size that always looks so clean doesn't have its own garbage collection. I explained how I can go to the landfill in off peak hours and drop off my trash for just a few dollars. I did tell him however that with this setup it's sometimes difficult to compost on a regular basis. He left me shaking his head.

There was a big crowd at council the other night. An unusually large group of spectators showed up at the June 23 town council meeting. They came to hear a presentation by ADI Limited, a consulting firm reviewing our municipal plan. The parameters of the review and some of the process involved was explained to council and the public. Some people wanted to give their input right away but this wasn't the place. There will be a series of sessions where the public will have input into the plan. These will be scheduled early in the fall. It's good to see so many people are interested in having a say in the new plan.

As well a number of residents gathered at the Brundage Point River Centre to hear a presentation about tourism development in the area. Local resident Laurel Reid, a consultant in the tourism industry prepared a detailed report making about 20 recommendations on how to develop and implement a tourism plan. Again it was great to see so many people interested enough to come out on a beautiful, warm evening to hear the presentation. I think most people left the session excited about the tourism possibilities in Grand Bay-Westfield.

Finally I just want to say how wonderful it is to run on the new track at River Valley Middle School. I've sneaked on there a few times already, usually at the beginning and end of my regular run along the trail. I usually do a couple of laps which translates into half a mile. Even though I'm slow it makes me feel good to know the distance I've traveled. Our new track will feature prominently in the Canada Day 10 Mile and 5 km race. Local runners and walkers as well as visitors will be able to test out the track because it forms part of the race route. About the only time I'll stay off the track is when the field is being used for soccer practice. I don't mind the kids but it's the comments and stares from the soccer moms who are sitting in chairs by the side of the track, that I want to avoid.