The Chilliwack
Progress Tuesday
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Chehalis Flats preservation area eyed by residents’ association.
FVRD approves Kinder Morgan study.
Challenge ahead as Smyl reloads roster.
Y O U R C O M M U N I T Y N E W S PA P E R • F O U N D E D I N 1 8 9 1 • W W W. T H E P R O G R E S S . C O M • T U E S D AY, A P R I L 2 , 2 0 1 3
Setting a new vision for Vedder Mountain Alina Konevski The Progress
City expected to pay for limited renovations
Continued: VEDDER/ p10
Continued: UPGRADE/ p9
Vedder Mountain resident Katie Burge (centre) explains to recreation officer Mike Peters (right) that she needs an open western access road to get home easily.
al interests in the interpretive forest site. One key interest group are local residents who need easy access to their homes. “I was told I could be denied access,” said resident Katie Burge of the interpretive forest’s plan to have public access from the east side of the mountain. Burge lives on the west, and an easternonly access route would force her to drive hours around the mountain to get home. “This makes me uneasy. I just want access to my property.” The only access road on the west is private property, which Burge is using with the owner’s permission. Some landowners on the west side have discussed barring the road to prevent
trespassing, and limit partying, discharging weapons, and garbage dumping on the mountain. “I don’t think it’s necessary for us to do that when the road’s been there since the 1800s,” said Burge. Provincial recreation officer Mike Peters has no plans to limit access, but said that it is “up to the private landowner what to do with the road.” This concern can be resolved, believes Steinebach. He used an example from 2005, when VMTA successfully negotiated with forestry company NorthWest Hardwoods to preserve trails within the company’s allowable logging area. Based on consultations with VMTA, the logger worked around trails
and restored those affected. Continued logging access to Vedder Mountain trees is a cornerstone of the interpretive forest site. For curious residents learning of the project for the first time, the initial impression was positive. “It sounds good, it sounds like they want to fix it,” said Herb Friesen of the plan’s relationship to garbage dumping on the mountain. From his home on Majuba Hill Road, he frequently hears the gunshots from recreational shooting, which he considers a disturbance. Peter and Cyndi Handler drove in from near Harrison Mills for the meeting to learn from the Vedder Mountain experience, and bring the les-
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sons back to their side of the Fraser River, where they see similar problems. “My brother’s an avid dirt biker, my sister an avid backcountry horsewoman, and I’m an avid hiker, cyclist. We all respect each other for differences of interest no matter what the motivation is. If it worked in our network, why can’t it in the public arena,” said Cyndi. “There’s enough room for everyone,” said husband Peter. “I’m pro-logging, probiking, but let’s do it in a responsible way.” They want to see adequate secure parking, so that recreational users don’t become targets for theft. And the Handlers are concerned that
City parks staff are recommending Chilliwack still go ahead with a $280,000 upgrade of the grandstand at Exhibition Field, despite being denied an additional $250,000 in federal funding for the project. The city had applied for a community infrastructure grant under the Western Economic Diversity program. However, in March the city learned its application had been turned down. Despite the setback, staff are recommending a portion of the work still go ahead. The stadium upgrade is necessary because of an earlier commitment to convert the field to an allweather surface. The artificial turf will allow the facility to be used year-round, and increase its annual usage to 2,000 hours from the current 160. But it will also mean the stadium will be used during the winter months – something it currently isn’t designed to do. (Water supplying the uninsulated washrooms, for example, must be shut off to prevent the pipes from bursting in freezing temperatures.) Retrofitting the washrooms and supplying heat, ventilation and insulation to other areas will cost an estimated $180,000. City
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Around 100 curious and concerned residents came out to see maps for the planned Vedder Mountain interpretive forest Wednesday night in Yarrow. The provincial Recreation Sites and Trails branch of the Ministry of Forests, Land and Natural Resources Operations is preparing an application to convert 3,200 hectares of provincial Crown land on Vedder Mountain into an interpretive forest site. The designation would mean additional funding for facilities and maintenance on a mountain where both recreational and illegal use, such as dumping, are rapidly increasing. Vedder Mountain houses a hive of diverse interests, with sometimes conflicting needs. Loggers harvest the trees, residents expect peaceful living, and recreational groups want open access to trails. Many of the recreational groups cannot use the trails at the same time. For example, an all-terrain vehicle or a hiker with a dog may spook a horserider. Through the Vedder Mountain Trails Association, six different groups have been cooperatively using the trails for years. This includes the Backcountry Horseman of BC, Vedder Running Club, Fraser Valley Mountain Bike Association, Chilliwack Outdoor Club, Cascade Off Road Motorcycle Club, and Lower Mainland ATV Club. VMTA president Dr. Mark Steinebach believes everyone can use the trails as long as they modify their behaviour. “It’s not possible for every group to have everything,” he said, but all groups can have some of their needs met. Steinebach believes this cooperation can extend to incorporating non-recreation-
Fed funds denied for stadium upgrade