Sunday March

by Frontenac News PDFs have moved to Google Drive. Access them from our website.

Monday March

Thinking of selling your waterfront property? Have it seen by 35,000+ people at the Cottage Life Show. Krishan Nathan, ASA TEAM LEADER, SALES REPRESENTATIVE Looking to Sell ? Contact Krishan today ProAlliance Realty, Brokerage INDEPENDENTLY OWNED AND OPERATED 613-572-2665 | krishan@thesoldsolution.com F rontenac County is hoping to take over the K&P trail between Sharbot Lake and the North Frontenac border. The trail section is owned by Central Frontenac Township.

The county has plans to upgrade the trail to make it as accessible as the 55km K&P trail section that was completed last fall between the county border with the City of Kingston and Sharbot Lake.

The K&P line north of Sharbot Lake was purchased by Oso Township sometime in the 1980’s. Central Frontenac Mayor (and Frontenac County Warden for 2020) Frances Smith remembers the purchase because she was the clerk for Oso Township at the time.

“As I recall, it was Marathon Realty, the real estate arm of Bell Canada, who owned it. I think they told us to name our price, since they didn’t want it anymore. We offered something like $5,000, and it was a done deal. But I’m not exactly sure about the date or the cost. It was a long time ago,” she said.

The trail has been used by snowmobiles, ATV’s, walkers, runners, cross country skiers, and cyclists, ever since, and a number of people access their seasonal and permanent dwellings from it.

The trail has many interesting features. It straddles four waterways (Sharbot Lake, Black Lake, Little Round Lake and Bolton Creek) runs through a culvert under Hwy. 7, passes major rock cuts, some swampland and thick woods, before reaching Clarendon Road and the only station on the old K&P line that is still standing.

It is maintained in a limited fashion by the township under a contract with the Eastern Ontario Trails Alliance (EOTA), and is groomed by the Snow Road Snowmobile Club in the winter time.

“We haven’t really invested much in it. When issues are brought to us, about trees over the trail or other maintenance matters, we call EOTA and they make arrangements to deal with the problem,” said Smith. “Other than that, we have basically left it alone since we bought it.”

The trail floods sometimes in the spring, and where it passes over open, swampy land, it is pretty rough, but passable.

All of these trail maintenance issues are familiar to the Economic Development department at Frontenac County, which has worked for years to forge a continuous trail to Sharbot Lake from the border with the City of Kingston.

With that project complete, the county plans to upgrade the existing trail between Sharbot Lake and the old station at Clarendon Road this

Country Classics Ltd., Brokerage Independently Owned & Operated www.LandOLakesRealEstate.ca Suzanne Regan Sales Representative

613-336-3000 / 613-336-8000 remaxlandolakes@gmail.com 12245 Hwy 41 Northbrook ON

Land O'Lakes Real Estate

K&P trail approaching the passage under Hwy. 7 - photo Martina Field

summer, but they need ownership of that section of trail in order to work on it.

Central Frontenac Township inherited the trail when it absorbed Oso township in 1998.

At their meeting last Wednesday (February 20), Frontenac County approved a motion, put forward by staff requesting that the trail north of Sharbot Lake be conveyed to them in order to enable them to work on it.

“With construction planned for later this year on the Frontenac K&P Trail from the Village of Sharbot Lake to Clarendon Station in 2020, it is staff recommendation that ownership of these lands be transferred from the Township of Central Frontenac to the County of Frontenac. As the primary investor in the infrastructure, it is in the County’s best interest to own, maintain and manage the improved asset to ensure long-term sustainability of the infrastructure,” said the staff report accompanying the motion. It will be up to Central Frontenac Council to decide if they want to convey the trail to the county.

“Should the Township of Central Frontenac respond affirmative to this request, a detailed review of the properties will be undertaken prior to a legal agreement and conveyance.”

In a phone interview Frances Smith said that the matter has not yet been raised at the Central Frontenac Council table and she cannot speak for Council, but she did not see, on the face of it, any reason for her council to raise any major objections.

“The county wants to Improve it and make it more accessible to our residents and visitors alike, and take over responsibility for maintenance.”

Frontenac County has budgeted money to upgrade for the 14km. section between the trailhead in Sharbot Lake and Clarendon Station, this year, so the conveyance needs to be completed shortly.