Should off-road vehicles be allowed on our township roads?
Council should be commended for their cautious and consultative approach to answering this pressing question.
While researching the issue, I’ve met several ORV drivers and have been impressed by their enthusiasm for their chosen pastime. I’m pleased to have them as neighbours.
However, the report council has just received seems to throw cold water on the proposal under consideration. The township’s insurance representative reports that, “Based on there being no shoulders and limited sight lines, it would be difficult from a risk management perspective to recommend the use of this section of Dranoel Road as a route for off-road vehicle users.”
The section crossing Highway 115 is also highlighted as one with high potential for lawsuits: “…the off-road vehicle driver will be leaving your (township) road to go onto the County Road, and if there was a loss at that intersection it is likely the Township would be named in a suit.”
The report lists some remedies, such as cutting back undergrowth and erecting more signs, but all of these come at a cost and do not seem to do much to reduce our collective liability as taxpayers.
Council has recently heard about the fantastic natural and community resources that make Cavan Monaghan so special. The Toronto Algonquin Greenway presentation demonstrated how our clean, green township can become a hub of human-powered recreation and tourism. I hope this is the path forward that our council chooses, for us and future generations.
David Frank, Cavan resident
Preserve this Historical Gem
Last night we had the pleasure of dining at Moody’s. Our table faced the parking lot and I was amazed at how the cars in the parking lot changed colours influenced by the excessive lumens emitted by the newly installed sign. How could this Times Square-appropriate sign be approved for a town that is so proud of its carefully preserved historical architecture? Town council members need to understand that they were elected by us to reflect our views. None of us want a gaudy sign at the entrance to our beautiful town. Why is it that so many movie companies, both Canadian and American, choose Millbrook to shoot movies? Perhaps it is time council put together enforceable guidelines to preserve this historical gem. It does not require a half million dollar study, it merely involves input from the concerned citizens that elected the same council. Perhaps if all council members lived in this area our interests would be better served.
Dave Moore, Cavan resident
Farmers Exempt
In a world with so much negative news, the Millbrook Times is a good news story: few small communities can share the news and be locally connected by an asset like this.
Articles in last month’s issue highlighted the potential this area has to hook into a growing trend – “human-powered” tourism appealing not just to people in our own province, but also to visitors from overseas. Increasingly we’re being seen as a hub for cycling and hiking as well as for culture and sightseeing, shopping and relaxing in a scenic rural setting. We’re on the map – the Shimano cycling route; the Ganaraska Hiking Trail; the Toronto Algonquin Greenway. Cavan Monaghan is a destination for mountain biking and geocaching, with everything from walking trails to barn quilt blocks, heritage architecture, trout streams, friendly welcomes and locally grown food.
We are a rural community rich in productive farmland. Farmers DO feed cities and they feed us. As Council considers its responsibility to legislate ORV traffic on municipal roads, concern has surfaced about the right of farmers to drive ATVs from field to field, barn to farm. Let’s be clear. Farmers using ORVs for agricultural purposes are exempt from this legislation. They are legal on roads now. They will still be legal after Council passes a by-law in response to Bill 107.
The shift in responsibility triggered by this Bill affects only recreational users who all have trailers or trucks to take their ORVs to where there are sanctioned trails for their enjoyment.
Celia Hunter
Submit your letters to the editor to thetimes@nexicom.net.
