The District of Sooke held an open house last night to get the community’s feedback on the planned DeMamiel Creek crossing.
The project, which is in the planning stages, will connect the Sunriver community with the side of the river near Phillips Road.
“This is where the public gets to weigh in on what’s important to them when it comes to designing the pedestrian crossing,” said Laura Hooper, the district’s parks and environmental services coordinator.
“Our goal is to get feedback on the accessibility of it. We want to know if people want it to be cycle-able, or if they want it to be more of a walking nature trail, or if they don’t want it at all, tell us that too.”
Hooper said all of the feedback so far has been positive, and right now the district has two different “best options” or ideas for the trail that people can weigh in on.
Both of the options begin at the central trail in DeMemiel Creek Park and end up connecting to the school grounds near Journey Middle School, but the first option is a longer more luxurious walk, and the second option is shorter but steeper.
“We’ve gone and looked at the area over the months, and there are a few different options but when you look at the existing trail system and the consider the costs, the options we came up with make the most sense,” explained Hooper.
The first option is 400 metres long and is an existing logging road, and the second option is 200 metres long on a steeper trail.
“I think the biggest decision is the use goals. Do they want it to be more of a hiking, walking, biking trail, or do they want to get places fast?,” said Hooper.
Both would require different upgrades, so the district is unsure of which option would cost less. There is no estimated cost of either option yet, as it is too early in the planning stages for the district to tell.