Skip to main content

Re-Open and Repair Maria's Walk

Hopeful start

"It shouldn't be a big deal, so hopefully McMaster will get behind the idea."

Goal

Remove barriers to access on the trail between McMaster parking lot "P" and the west side of the bridge over Cootes.

Barriers

  • The barriers are cement and other debris blocking the lower access point to the trail at Lot P
  • No trespassing sign
  • The "speed humps" on the actual trail, making the trail more dangerous.

History

This trail was part of the Royal Botanical Gardens’ Coldspring Valley Nature Sanctuary, 1958-1963. 

This is the longest, mostly intact, surviving trail, after campus parking lot expansion into west campus in 1968. McMaster bought the land from the RBG in 1963.

Our Request

We will be asking McMaster University to remove barriers to this section of trail (see red stars on map), so that people can use it safely. (blocked at both ends, and “speed humps” on trail)

We also want to commemorate the history of the area in some way with some sort of sign/plaque. Rather than treating this historic path as a liability, we want McMaster to celebrate the natural footpath and history of the area.

Other trails leading to the same area like the Lakelet Path south of the Campus Services building (see yellow star on map, above) have “use at own risk” signs, as does the trail system of McMaster property at Lower Lion’s Club road in Hamilton.

There is no need for “no trespassing” signs on this historical trail. Use the same signage as the Lakelet Path and embrace the remaining beauty of the footpath known as Maria's Walk. Remove the barriers, and welcome people to enjoy the trail.


Who to contact?


  • Let the university know you want the path opened and repaired with a polite correspondence: contact Roger Couldrey, VP Administration at McMaster: vpadmin@mcmaster.ca or (905) 525-9140, ext. 24755 (please cc or send a copy to dundastard@gmail.com so we can gauge the interest and arrange follow-up here at Restore Cootes)
  • Want to get more involved behind the scenes? Or maybe you think this campaign is misguided? Do you have some ideas you want to share? Contact OPIRG McMaster at 905-525-9140 x26026 or e-mail Randy at dundastard@gmail.com.


RESTORECOOTES.BLOGSPOT.CA

Other links: 




Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Binkley's Pond, gone for parking

Jacob Binkley (1806-67), great grandson of Marx [Binkley], built the handsome stone house that still stands at 54 Sanders Blvd at the head of a ravine. The house was completed in 1847 and named Lakelet Vale, as it had a little spring-fed lake at the rear. Binkley's Pond, as it was known, was used for skating, fishing, and good times. It is now the Zone 6 parking lot at McMaster University on the west side of Cootes Drive. Loreen Jerome, The Way We Were "The House that Jacob Built" Ainslie Wood/Westdale Community Association of Resident Homeowners Inc. (AWWCA) http://www.awwca.ca/articles/ Skater's on Binkley's Pond circa 1917, now a McMaster parking lot

Where did the water go? Art action in Lot M Parking

West Campus Eco-Art Project  A walking activity and site activation on McMaster’s West Campus.  West Campus Eco-Art Project is a project that incorporates creative walking activities and an artistic site activation connected with the West Campus Redesign Initiative at McMaster University. The initiative provides opportunities for connecting with nature through an on-line informational video, walking excursions and creative activities that deepen knowledge and experience with place in all its complexities (social history, citizen science, ecology and diversity).  Focusing on the Coldwater creek valley on McMaster’s West Campus, participants will learn about the history and unique features of the area and will be invited to then engage with the site through observation, sketching and stencil-making. Stencils will be used to paint text and image on the parking lot asphalt to delineate a blue line that marks an historic water route.  The project is supported by the McMaster Museum of Art (

McMaster's Parking Problem: Next Level

I'm sharing a recent article published in the Dundas Star News about McMaster's plan to build a - get this - $17-million dollar parking structure. Seventeen million. Yes, $17,000,000.00 That's a lot of money to provide temporary shelter for vehicles of people who choose to drive to campus. We will be following this closely. Here's the article.  Cootes Drive six-storey McMaster University parking garage under review Variances or amendment to zoning bylaw expected to permit parking structure Craig Campbell, Dundas Star News, Friday, March 5, 2021 Zoning bylaw variances, or amendments, could be required for a planned six-storey, 567-space McMaster University parking garage west of Cootes Drive, and north of Thorndale Crescent. University spokesperson Michelle Donavon said the $17-million structure on parking lot K at Westaway Road will help ongoing efforts to re-naturalize parts of the west campus, by moving some surface parking into the structure. “These plans will increa