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Mountain bike riders are getting closer to rolling through a new bike skills park in Penticton, as the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee discusses the perfect location.
The Penticton and Area Cycling Association (PACA) has offered to build and maintain the site, which would be free for everyone to use. The cost to build the park, according to PACA, could be anywhere from $50,000-150,000, depending on the location.
The original location concept for Campbell Mountain has since hit a snag, sending PACA volunteers, city staff and committee members on the hunt for a new site.
Blake Laven, Director of Development Services at the City of Penticton, told the committee that staff realized during discussions with the Province that the process to gain access to the land at Campbell Mountain would be lengthy.
Multiple ideas were proposed by staff, including the Three Blind Mice trail area, Munson Mountain, the lower grounds of Uplands Elementary school and the Esplanade along Okanagan Lake. Member debated the pros and cons of each suggested site.
Pat Dowler of PACA pointed out that the park would require at least one acre of land: “In a perfect world, it would be in the 2-3 acre range.”
Committee member Laura Harp commented that the ideal location should be easy to access and suited to all ages, worrying about the lack of parking at the Three Blind Mice site and also about the popularity of the disc golf course at that location.
“I can see some concerns and conflicts there with trying to squeeze in another high-usage activity,” she said. However, others commented that the location might be the best suited for a bike skills park, given the fact that it’s already an established mountain biking network maintained by PACA.
Further information and visual representation of each of the specific sites was requested to come to the committee. Staff will bring forward a more detailed report to a future committee meeting for further discussion.
