MOUNTAIN VIEW COUNTY - County-owned parks are seeing a lot of traffic, probably at least in part because of the COVID-19 pandemic, councillors heard May 12.
Chris Atchison, director of legislative, community and agricultural services, said all five parks have recently seen strong visitor levels and that is expected to continue.
The William J. Bagnall Park saw increased usage this winter compared with 2020, with trails well used, and Winchell Lake was also busy, with increased ice fishing activities observed, he said.
Day use at the Water Valley Campground was strong throughout the winter, while Hiller’s Dam and Davidson Park saw average winter use, he said.
Atchison presented his quarterly report to council and provided further comment.
“We continue to see high usage of all of our parks, primarily being driven by probably the COVID pandemic where lots of people are trying to get outdoors and experience some of those areas that are less populated but where they can still stay close to home,” said Atchison.
“We are seeing high usage and expect to see that high usage continue. We should see increased traffic in those parks in the coming months.”
Atchison’s quarterly report also gave an update on a number of projects, including the McDougal Pit Solar Project.
“Sun Alta and administration continue to work on the McDougal Pit Solar Project development and have further contemplated the proposed size of the project and potential benefit that the county may realize from the development,” he said.
Regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, he said, “The county’s MOST grant fund (from the federal government) has been successfully allocated to successful businesses. The county continues to support businesses through the pandemic by providing information relative to provincial and federal grant programs. The county developed a communication to businesses to support those that may benefit from outdoor patio areas.”
Meanwhile, county peace officers issued 83 driving offence tickets in the first quarter, down markedly from 194 in the same period in 2020.
Top stops during the quarter included one for 64 kilometres over the posted speed limit in the Westerdale neighbourhood, 60 over in Lonepine, 56 over in Eagle Hill/Westward Ho, and 55 over in Dogpound.
Also during the May 12 meeting, councillors approved allocating $57,906 from the Summer Games Legacy Fund to the park reserve for use on a future project that will "commemorate the legacy of the Summer Games (held in the district in 1983) and those residents that participated in or helped to deliver the games."
The fund was recently dissolved, with the money distributed to various partner municipalities.
