The Tumbler Ridge Mountain Bike Association is on fire.
They completed their trails master plan less than two weeks ago, and have already been green-lit for a zoning change that will see the construction of a new pump track as well as a $500,000 grant from the province for construction of trails along the ridge east of town.
The $500,000 is one of the largest in a series of over 150 grants provided by the provincial government, totaling $14 million.
“As someone who lives in a rural community, I know that rural BC is the backbone of our economy,” said Doug Donaldson, Minister of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development. “The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted every region of our province, and I’m glad our government is providing these one-time grants to lend extra help to people, communities and economies in rural BC”
Tumbler Ridge’s grant was one of 39 trail and recreation projects. “This boost from the Province to enhance new economic development opportunities for rural and remote communities is very much welcomed by the District of Tumbler Ridge,” said Keith Bertrand, mayor, District of Tumbler Ridge. “Here in the Tumbler Ridge UNESCO Global Geopark, we have the natural terrain to create some world-class mountain biking, which will definitely complement all of the splendour we have to offer here. Our Tumbler Ridge mountain bike association has done a tremendous job to bring this dream to reality.”
TRMBA President Jane Butters says the grant took a very circuitous route to get to them. “Originally we applied for the grant in partnership with the district of Tumbler Ridge,” she says. “We applied for that grant through the Rural Dividends funding stream, which was cancelled—or at least put on hold—last year, when all the forestry crisis stuff was happening. We received notification from them that it was the whole program was on hold, and we thought pretty much that was it. Then we got a call this spring from the provincial government saying ‘oh you know like would that application still stand? How does it look? Is everything still applicable?’ It was a super quick conversation. We told them everything still stands and we’re still interested in doing the project. And from there we received notification that it was approved under a different funding stream which was pretty exciting. The funding comes from the Ministry of Forest, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development as part of Rural Community Development Grant funding. But being told that the grant wasn’t happening, and then getting told it was approved under a different funding stream is super crazy and really exciting.”
While the funding has come through, they aren’t going to be able to start work on the trails this year. Instead, the TRMBA’s focus will be on finishing the pump track in the green space in Pioneer Loop.
While half a million sounds like a lot, the plan is to build the trails to a high standard, using a professional trail building company. The first thing that needs to be done is build a trail up the ridge, a 4.12 km trail that will cost an estimated $150,000. Butters is hoping they’ll be able to eke out two other beginner downhill trails with the rest of the budget.
Indeed, the trail system—as currently envisioned—will have just under 42 km of trail and will cost just over three million dollars.
Butters says the half million will allow them to complete phase one of the project. And while the trails will hopefully keep the local mountain bikers entertained, she says the project is also about economic growth and diversity. “We’ve had a tonne of conversations about the potential for economic growth,” she says. “If you look at communities like Valemount, it’s pretty much a pop up bike town. They’ve got breweries, they’ve got little coffee shops and a little bike shop and all those kind of businesses that have all come into town along with the biking. We know the potential is there to drive businesses. That’s the whole premise of having the pump track downtown. It helps with downtown revitalization which is something pretty important for the District, and we’ll have visitors parking downtown and riding out from downtown. They will be coming into town, and recreating from our core, outwards, versus a lot of our recreation, where visitors don’t need to come into town. When we had experts here last summer helping us develop a master plan, that was a huge part of the conversation we had with them and at our stakeholders meeting that we held as we created that master plan: what does Tumbler Ridge need and how can how can biking enable and enhance what the needs of tumbler Ridge as a community are right now. The more visitors and locals we can draw into down town, the better for our community, and the better for potential businesses.”
While a start date hasn’t been set for construction on the pump track yet (Council needs to give final reading to the bylaw changes at their next meeting in July), Butters is hoping it will be finished by the time fall rolls around, with construction on the ridge trails hopefully starting in 2021.
