The first phase of an east-west Niagara Falls recreational trail that will use a decommissioned railway corridor has been approved by city council. Council last week approved $1.9 million in development charge funding to proceed with tendering and construction of the Niagara, St.
Catharines and Toronto (NS&T) Trail. The first 2.6-kilometre phase will extend from Kalar to Montrose roads and from Meadowvale Drive to Drummond Road.
In 1964, the city acquired about 11.7 hectares of NS&T lands stretching from Thorold Townline Road to Canadian National Railway lands east of Portage Road. The balance of the corridor is in patchwork ownership by private and public entities, including the city.
The corridor crosses through numerous neighbourhoods and is bisected by the Queen Elizabeth Way, Ontario Power Generation hydro canal, CNR line, and arterial and collector roads. Erik Nickel, the city’s general manager of municipal works, said other phases totalling $12 million will be brought forward in future budgets for council’s consideration. He said 90 per cent of the $1.
9-million cost for Phase 1 will be paid for by development charges collected by the municipality. “We need to develop a DC reserve to be able to pay for those, so there will be future conversations through the budget process about approving those projects as we go forward,” said Nickel. “Phase 1 is the phase that I would say is most easily implemented — it’s probably the most useful phase and then we’ll co.