The province's 2026 budget, released on Tuesday, includes mention of Dauphin's Northgate Trails getting $1.5 million for the expansion of the trail system to Riding Mountain National Park, in an effort to "position the Parkland region as a mountain biking destination".
Clayton Swanton, President and Chair of Northgate Trails, said the announcement is definitely a breath of fresh air.
"Being able to move forward with the vision that we've had since day 1, I think this the announcement that will get us there, so yeah there was a lot of excitement just to know that it now gives us the opportunity to expand the trail network into Riding Mountain National Park...we've been talking with the Park probably since before we built Northgate, there's been lots of communication between members of the Dauphin community and Riding Mountain National Park about the trails, in the last couple of years those have really escalated," said Swanson.
Swanton also said the announcement gives Northgate hope that Dauphin might see those dollars from the budget being used sooner than you'd think.
"We're hopeful that with this announcement it will really elevate the timeline, it's possible by this fall that there's some of this money being spent on trail expansion," said Swanson.
Swanton wasn't only amazed by the amount of the investment. He said the fact that Northgate was even included in the budget is a good message to recration not just in the Parkland but in all of Manitoba.
"It sends a strong message to everybody that these things can be prioritized, because they're not just extras, they're not just fluff, there's real world dollars and cents that can be spent off for economic drivers out of projects like this," said Swanson.
Swanton also said Northgate is planning community outreach in the near future, possibly in May. For more information about Northgate Trails, click here to visit their website.
