At the MBH meeting last night, Councillor Hendsbee brought us a parcel of land in Porters Lake to consider.
Anyone in Porters Lake? I can dig up the parcel number and you can check it out.
Parcel number I thing was: 41230541 off Oconnell Dr?
Interesting - what’s the parcel being considered for?
Parcel of land to build on? To buy? MOU or Contract?
He brought it to the MBH meeting so I presume he would like us to pursue a land use agreement and build a trail on it. Interestingly, it borders on a power line that connects to crown land.
It’s a small parcel, but is there is local interest maybe we could make something of it… who knows
I’m just getting a feel for interest…
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Exciting potential.
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Dig it build it ride it, i’m in
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it’s only 32 acres, not going to get much in there. That’s roughly half the size of Resevoir Park in Wolfville for example. Irishmans Rd property is 90ish acres. Just the off leash dog park part of Shubie is 25 acres.
(disclaimer: super rough property line drawing, it’s actually smaller than what is drawn)
Looks like a lot of slope in a small area, maybe good maybe not so…lots of mapped water in the area too. The terrainin the area is rocky to say the least. 30 minutes driving from central Dartmouth.
I mean maybe its rad in there and there’s someone in Porter’s Lake dying to take on trying to get something done there, sounds great.
Good luck keeping the atv and moto dudes out of there.
Hendsbee had indicated previously that the main attraction to that parcel of land was that it’s adjacent to a much larger piece of crown land that MBH could potentially access as well.
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You should reach out to the active transportation group in that area.
http://www.shoreat.ca
If this does gain traction, and if the goal is to access an adjacent piece of land, Councillor Heendsbee will likely promote the use of ATVs on any trails developed there. Oh sure, they claim that they only wish to share the trail, and they market themselves as such but it will become for their exclusive use.
Hendsbee was one of only two councillors to vote against the South Park Street Bike Lane on Tuesday; I don’t know if he’s a cycling ally. 
I do hope no singletrack has to be shared with motorized vehicles.
He’s also in favor of bicycle registrations, bicycle licences and a bicycle tax (surcharge when you buy a new bike) as a source of revenue.
edit
Oh, and bridge tolls for bikes.
I wonder what his motive for bringing forth that suggestion about that land parcel was?
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Hendsbee is a dinosaur when it comes to urban planning. He is anti-bike from a transportation point of view, typical of old, rural councillors.
He brought this forward because it’s in his district, is currently unused and would benefit the people who seemingly can’t help themselves by voting him back in again and again. He sees MBH as someone who could make that a reality for him without a lot of effort on his part and he comes out looking the hero to his constituents.
That said, land is land, and if it’s possible to build good trails on this space, we shouldn’t pass it up. But we should definitely be wary of these ‘gifts’, and ensure that if anything were to be developed that it was limited to non-motorized use, otherwise it’s a no go for me.
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Yes.
It looks like a pretty small parcel too. Hard to imagine motos in there. I’d like to see the land some time. It could be a swamp for all we know.
He thinks people are as stupid as he is?
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I live in Councilor Hendsbee’s district. I’ve had the unpleasant experience of talking to him in person and via email and he tends to use his size and voice to bully. He is all for licensing, registering or otherwise taxing on-road bicycle use. There’s no doubt in my mind that he would support the requirement to register off-road bicycles, in a similar fashion to ATVs.
I don’t know what he’s up to, but I’m willing to bet that, if this parcel of land goes further down the path (pardon the pun) of a mountain bike park, off-highway vehicle enthusiasts will show up with Hendsbee in tow, likely claiming that this is what he had in mind all along.
By all means explore the possibility, but don’t be surprised if he pulls a bait and switch.
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I looked at it on Street View and I can’t get a clear sense of how to access it, at least from O’Connell. Houses are quite close, I doubt the residence there would enjoy the extra traffic.
Any further detail on that parcel? I could check it out as I live 6km from there.
- bites tongue *