A new project that would build a 2.4-kilometre boardwalk and several bridges across the Rouge Marsh is moving closer to construction.
Late last month, contractors were asked to qualify to bid on the project.
Construction would involve the establishment of three pedestrian bridges across the Rouge River, a boardwalk above the marsh, as well as general improvements to the beach.
The boardwalk would close a gap in the larger north-south trail network in Rouge National Urban Park. As of now, the southern end of the trail system stops at Kingston Road because there is no way of crossing the marsh on foot.
Including unofficial trails, the new marsh crossing would make it possible to hike from 14th Avenue in Markham to Toronto’s lakeshore and the Rouge Hill GO Station, a distance of roughly 20 kilometres.
To select a contractor, Parks Canada will create a shortlist of applicants who meet the agency’s criteria. The successful bidder must have previous experience building a boardwalk and related earthworks in a sensitive marsh or wetland environment.
For years, the project has been controversial in the Scarborough and Pickering neighbourhoods near the marsh.
The Friends of the Rouge Watershed, a non-profit dedicated to protecting the area, produced a severely critical video about the project in 2021. The group said construction plans for the boardwalk will see the platform built too low to be above peak flooding levels.
The group said the boardwalk will “increase the risk of loss of life and property damage.”
Advocates also claimed the project will “waste taxes by building a vulnerable boardwalk below flood levels in an area with extreme flooding events and erosion hazards.”
Friends of the Rouge Watershed alleged the boardwalk will “increase traffic, parking, trespassing, vandalism and noise in surrounding communities."
The organization did not respond to repeated TorontoToday requests for comment.
In many cases, homeowners with properties backing on to both sides of the river have created private docks or stairs leading down to the water.
On the Scarborough side, the Strava heat map shows a network of unofficial trails in the marsh starting from a dead-end street. Part of the new construction project involves “decommissioning” unofficial trails, Parks Canada documents show.
A Parks Canada spokesperson said the agency cannot confirm a construction start date at this time.
Marsh boardwalks are rare but not unknown in Ontario, though few contractors are likely to have experience. There is an 1,100-metre boardwalk at Point Pelee, near Windsor, Ont. that was rebuilt in 2011.
