Summerstown Trails needs $26,000 in aid, group says

(Newswatch Group/Bill Kingston, File)

LANCASTER – The non-profit group that operates the Summerstown Trails says it needs just over $26,000 in financial help and staffing for this upcoming fall and winter.

Friends of the Summerstown Trails President Vic Leroux will make the ask of South Glengarry council tonight (Tuesday).

With coronavirus restrictions in place, the group expects more people to head out into the great outdoors where social distancing is easier instead of being shut up indoors during the cooler months.

To provide programs, such as ski and snowshoe rentals, the group is asking for help from the township to cover “extra COVID measures as we are unable to pay for these with our limited resources which will be further amputated this year.”

It believes the rental program will be “more popular than ever” but that more “touch points” and “sharing” of rental equipment will result in more money being spent to ensure the safety of renters and volunteers.

The total request is $26,356, based on a letter to the township. How that figure was arrived at is not included in the documents ahead of tonight’s presentation shortly after 7 p.m.

The group has approximately 80 volunteers and operates 18 kilometers of ski trails and 10 kilometers of snowshoe trails on the west side of County Road 27, north of Highway 401.