The Trans Canada Trail is providing $58,500 to assist in the rehabilitation of the Jackson Creek Trail in Peterborough.
The Jackson Creek Trail, a 4.5-kilometre multi-use trail that goes through Peterborough and Selwyn Township, is a section of the Trans Canada Trail (also known as The Great Trail). Otonabee Conservation owns and manages the trail section, which closed after Thanksgiving for upgrades and is expected to reopen on Dec. 16, or possibly earlier, depending on the weather.
The Trans Canada Trail extends 28,000 km across Canada.
“Trans Canada Trail is proud to support the revitalization of the Jackson Creek Trail, and we celebrate Otonabee Conservation’s dedication to expanding and improving its trails, in order to make them a welcoming place for all community members and visitors,” stated Eleanor McMahon, president and CEO of Trans Canada Trail.
“The Trans Canada Trail would not be what it is without the commitment of our local partners. National in scope and local in execution, Trans Canada Trail collaborates with provincial and territorial partners and over 500 local trail operators across the country, such as Otonabee Conservation, who are instrumental in the Trail’s past, current and future development.”
An additional $3,000 has been allocated for signage along the trail, which extends from Ackinson Road in Selwyn Township west to the concrete bridge at the entrance to Jackson Park in Peterborough.
Otonabee Conservation says the funding will focus on addressing points of erosion, installing culverts, regrading slopes, enhancing bridges, resurfacing of the length of the trail, and adding benches and educational signage.
The project received a $523,917 funding boost from the Government of Canada’s Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario) and Canada Community Revitalization Fund (CCRF) and a $200,000 grant from the Trans Canada Trail Board. Another $20,000 in donations was raised through the local Your Metres Matter campaign for revitalizing the Jackson Creek Trail. The campaign said each $50 donation helps revitalize one metre of the trail.