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Club still willing to groom trails

The St. Albert Nordic Ski Club (STANSKI) volunteers have been maintaining the cross-country ski trails in the City of St. Albert and the adjacent River Lot 56 Natural Area for over 30 years.

The St. Albert Nordic Ski Club (STANSKI) volunteers have been maintaining the cross-country ski trails in the City of St. Albert and the adjacent River Lot 56 Natural Area for over 30 years.

The River Lot 56 Natural Area Society is a non-profit society that has a formal lease with the provincial government to act as stewards of the area. In recent years STANSKI has experienced increasing difficulties for club volunteers to continue providing safe and high quality ski trails for the public to enjoy for free. STANSKI would like to clarify the following:

• Contrary to the statement on the River Lot 56 website, STANSKI is willing to continue to groom trails in the river lot during the 2009/2010 ski season while continuing to address safety concerns. However access was denied.

• STANSKI has continued to request a hazardous tree management plan to ensure public safety while travelling in the river lot.

• Recent closure of one of the two access points to the lower river lot from Kingswood Park, combined with the two new signs installed at the remaining entrance, present a significant impediment to the grooming and track setting of cross-country ski trails in the River Lot 56 Natural Area.

• The loss of these quality trails for our over 120 young athletes significantly reduces the ability to continue to enhance the health and wellness of the youth in our community. Similarly, those less mobile citizens will not be able to as easily enjoy the River Lot 56 trails.

STANSKI will continue to groom and set cross-country ski tracks in Kingswood Park and if safe, on the Sturgeon River. We are hoping to extend these trails in the near future on city ground. In the meantime the public, as well as STANSKI’s 120-plus registered youth, will not have access to groomed trails in the river lot this ski season. If you have any questions about STANSKI’s activities, please visit their website at www.stanski.ca. For questions about the River Lot 56 Natural Area, please visit www.riverlot56.ca.

The Board of the St. Albert Nordic Ski Club (STANSKI), St. Albert

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