The city is considering banning ATVs and snowmobiles from city greenspaces.
City councillors and planners discussed the proposal at a council and special management meeting Thursday evening on the Official Community Plan.
“Every greenbelt and park in the city is chewed up from those things,” said Councillor Doug Graham, who has long lobbied for a ban.
The city may either create policy on motorized vehicles in the soon-to-be-released Official Community Plan, or it may write a separate bylaw on the issue later in the year.
“If council is contemplating a full ban then we can go and do consultation (for a new bylaw) and go from there,” said city manager, Dennis Shewfelt.
He suggested allowing only “out-and-away routes” to shuttle ATV users out of the greenbelt and away from the city.
If bylaw were created, it would also include legislation on what is allowed in park and greenspace areas.
This would be particularly necessary in five new park areas the city is proposing: McLean Lake, McIntyre Creek, Paddy’s Pond, Chadburn Lake and Wolf Creek.
Opposition came from Mayor Bev Buckway who suggested a ban would prevent city maintenance and enforcement.
“Our guys wouldn’t be able to do enforcement because we’d be breaking our own bylaws,” she said.
It would also restrain responsible users, she added.