The Essex Region Conservation Authority (ERCA) has scrapped plans for a proposed disc golf course at Holiday Beach after an outcry from existing users of the property, particularly birders.
The authority’s board unanimously supported a recommendation at Thursday night’s meeting to abandon the project.
“I still feel strongly that there was not any harm with … what was being proposed,” said Chief Administrative Officer Tim Byrne.
“But again, one of our largest user groups was dramatically opposed to it, and, you know, if you’ve got … a fairly significant established user group who’s dead set against something … it makes no sense to proceed.”
Many season pass holders had threatened not to renew their passes if the course went ahead, Byrne said.
ERCA’s board had approved the nine-hole disc golf course in the spring after being approached by enthusiasts of the sport — which involves throwing frisbees at targets and is played using similar rules to golf.
Petition, emails opposed disc golf course
A sponsor had offered to cover 100 per cent of the installation costs, according to a report to the board, co-authored by Byrne.
Staff consulted with an external biologist who frequently prepares environmental impact assessments and with Canadian Wildlife Services Officers, according to the report, and they did not raise any concerns about the proposal.
But more than 2,000 people signed an online petition against the course, and more than 70 per cent of the people who sent emails and comment cards to the authority on the topic also opposed it.
The president of the Holiday Beach Migration Observatory said disc golf is not appropriate for a conservation area.
Jaime Patillo is the co-owner of the Patillo Apple Orchard Disc Golf Course. (Michael Evans/CBC)
“Holiday Beach is a fantastic facility for people to enjoy quiet enjoyment of the natural environment, and having a disc golf course in there is just not appropriate to the overall sort of ambiance of the area,” Hugh Kent said.
“And in addition to that, Holiday Beach is an important bird area.”
The beach area is a vital stop-off point for songbirds that migrate in the spring and fall, Kent said.
It’s also on the prime migration route for hawks.
“Anything extra that is disruptive just chips away at the value of Holiday Beach,” he said.
But the operator of one disc golf course in Windsor-Essex said she believes opponents of the course lack an understanding the sport.
“I think a lot of people have some stereotypes about … disc golfers — maybe how they behave or how they act,” said Jaime Patillo, the co-owner of the Patillo Apple Orchard Disc Golf Course.
“I think there’s a way to plan sustainably where it could be a win-win for everybody.”
Disc golf, she said, helps people get closer to nature.
One of the founders of the Windsor Essex Disc Golf Club, Scott White, told CBC in April that the sport is like “a hike or a walk with a frisbee.”
Holiday Beach disc golf plans scrapped after public outcry
The owner of a disc golf course in Windsor-Essex says she believes opposition to a proposed course at Holiday Beach is based on misunderstanding about the sport.
The conservation authority’s management agreement for Holiday Beach mandates it to manage the area for a range of public recreational activities, Byrne said.
And it’s important to attract new user groups to increase gate revenues so it can accumulate reserves to cover the cost of emergencies such as storm damage.
But it will now work on options, such as ecotourism, that don’t conflict with the wishes of existing user groups, he said.
“We are approaching the donor about doing a botanical garden and then surrounding it with a garden maze or a … cedar hedge maze,” Byrne said.
“It’s a hiking opportunity, and it’s a bit of an exploration opportunity.”
