Newly formed working group to work with Town and expert consultants to design new public amenity
Most hobbyists would tell you that while they’d love to be able to be directly involved in the design of a facility, opportunities to participate in that type of endeavor are rare. That’s why the Town of Coaldale is so excited to announce the formation of the Mountain Bike Park Working Group. This group of community members will be collaborating with Town staff and design consultants to develop an amenity that will serve a broad range of ages, abilities and levels of experience. The best part? Youths residing in the community make up over half the membership of the group!
“We were excited to see a tremendous level of interest in participating in the working group, particularly from the youth in the community,” said Leia Cathro, Community Development Intern at the Town of Coaldale. “The group’s contribution to the project and the feedback collected in Phase 1 of engagement will help guide what the layout and terrain will look like and guarantee that this park will be a resounding success for all members of the community. This is a project that has received incredibly positive feedback already and we can’t wait to see where this group of engaged citizens will take us.”
The Town received 71 online survey responses during Phase 1 of engagement and 21 applications for the working group. To ensure a diverse panel of members were included, all applicants were accepted into the working group, including 11 participants under the age of 18. This doesn’t mean that other community members won’t be able to contribute to the development of the park; there will be additional opportunities to participate in future engagement phases.
“The working group is a unique and exciting opportunity for the youth in our community to have a say in building an amenity that will largely be theirs to enjoy,” said Town of Coaldale Mayor Kim Craig. “Council is eager to see the outcomes of the design from the working group’s collaboration efforts.”
The Mountain Bike Park Working Group is the 5th citizen committee that the current Council has approved during their 2017-2021 term. These working groups play a vital role in ensuring direct citizen participation and feedback in a number of key projects. The groups have been created within the context of Council’s commitment to conducting an inclusive and comprehensive public participation process.
“We take a lot of pride in the frequency and the depth of our interaction with the public,” said Spencer Croil, Director of Planning & Community Development. “It’s not common for municipalities the size of Coaldale to have so many projects and citizen groups on the go at one time, but our whole organization understands the value they bring and the energy they can direct at an opportunity like this.”