Fundraising effort seeks to boost Assiniboine Forest visitation, sustainability

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This article was published 08/04/2021 (1900 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

THE Rotary Club of Winnipeg-Charleswood has kicked-off an $800,000 fundraising effort to revitalize the Assiniboine Forest.

The initiative, announced Wednesday, will have the rotary club partner with the City of Winnipeg to raise money toward enhancements to the 700-acre civic green space.

Over the last 30 years, the club has raised around $600,000 to keep the forest in good condition, said the chairman of the club’s forest committee, Jack Wilson.

“We’re aware of different potential grants that are available, from the city, province, federal government, private business — a number of them are quite interested in the forest,” he said.

The club funded a two-year study on how to improve the forest, both on the visitor and sustainability fronts, in 2019. A request for proposal has been issued for consultants to build a plan based on the study the club can use to seek grant funding and donations.

Building new trails, upgrading existing trails to make them wheelchair accessible, public washrooms, additional signage and a new parking lot are part of the enhancements proposed by the study. Enhancements to the Assiniboine Forest will be phased in as funding is available over the next five to 10 years.

The funding will also go to sustainability initiatives, including planting more wildflowers native to the Prairies and keeping out invasive weeds.

“We’re not wanting to change it from being a natural forest, it’s not going to have cut lawns and stuff, it’s to be in a natural state so people can see what occurs in a forest in a natural state,” Wilson said.

The forest has become a popular spot through the COVID-19 pandemic, as people turned to nature for safe recreation over the past year. Wilson said while he felt the new visitation has overall been beneficial, the rotary club felt compelled to start fundraising again, after seeing the effect packed trails had over the summer.

“With this added pressure on the forest, we thought maybe it was time that we step up the game a bit to work with the city to ensure we have good safe trails, but also make sure we do things to encourage people to stay on the trails,” he said.

malak.abas@freepress.mb.ca

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