An Amherstburg councillor wants to see the final phase of a bike trail at the Libro Centre completed.
Don McArthur will be presenting a notice of motion on Monday evening asking for approval to move forward with Phase 3 of construction for the Windsor Essex Bike Community (WEBC) Libro Centre Mountain Bike Trail project.
In December 2024, council gave "conditional approval" for the group to move forward, however they were waiting for the Libro Centre Master Plan to presented in April - however, that plan has been delayed.
McArthur says he wants to allow the group to move forward so they can complete the trail before the summer, opposed to waiting for the Master Plan to return to council.
Phase 1 of the trail opened in June 2023, and Phase 2 opened in July 2024 for a total of 6 kilometres of trail. The WEBC group raised $100,000 to complete the first two phases, and have already raised $55,000 for Phase 3.
McArthur says the two existing portions are well loved.
"It's a fantastic amenity for the kids of Amherstburg, I use the trail all the time, I always see people out there - and it hasn't cost the Amherstburg taxpayers a dime because these folks have raised money, they build the trails themselves, and it's just a marvellous amenity for our community."
He says this would give the WEBC group time to construct the trail before summer.
"They want to get out of the bid early before the heat of the summer comes, and also so they can host their youth sessions with the kids on Wednesday nights, so they can do it in the summer," McArthur says. "So, best they build the trails now in the spring as opposed to the heat of the summer, so I'm just trying to push this project along because it's been so fantastic."
He says by completing the trails, opportunities open up.
"They can now host races there, they can now host events there, that this can actually become a destination attraction - no different than Black Oak Park in Windsor, places where people go in Michigan. That'll become a destination attraction bringing people to the Libro Centre and Amherstburg."
The trails range in difficulty, with some beginner and more intermediate portions. Phase 3 would add another 2.5 kilometres to the trail which will go through a tree line. In total, the trail will be 8.5 kilometres long.
McArthur states that if council approves the notice of motion, that the Windsor Essex Bike Community group could start the work of Phase 3 right away to allow the trail to open by this summer.
Council will meet at 6 p.m. on May 26.