Trees in Abbotsford - Urban Forest Strategy

More trees killed on the corner of Lynden & Peardonville this week. Who the heck is the Arborist? What is he being paid and by whom? Those trees were 80 years old AND take a life time to grow AND they were located on City property!! Greed. The idea is to get that construction up as fast as possible and trees are in the way & limit what can be built. Two trees were unhealthy, true, but the trees on the city property were healthy with a circumference of about 3 feet. Shame on the District for allowing this. Shame!! Land is everywhere. Houses replacing old houses should be made to fit the lot and no trees whacked down indiscriminately, which at this time they are, over & over so a parking lot can be the front yard to accommodate 6-7 cars. At the same time a tree was cut down at 2411 Lynden right across the street. Healthy but now dead of course. Killed. Why? Somebody needs to run for office that does not allow the greed of developers to sway the Council into allowing the cutting of healthy trees or the butchering of a tree’s limbs so severely that the trees will not survive & eventually die anyway. I question the Arborist’s decision recommending removal or trimming. Review his reports, please, which likely will not make any rational sense for removal other than to allow a residential parking lot to accommodate the developer. This must stop before no old trees are left.

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I know much of the Ledgeview/McKee Peak area is privately owned but there is such potential for Abbotsford to grow in that area. If you look at the way Chilliwack has created the Community Forest, or how Squamish has built an entire economy on the outdoors, you can clearly see the potential. We use the McKee Peak/Ledgeview trails on nearly a daily basis -- certainly 5 times or more each week. We hike, run, mountain bike, dog walk, etc. It's the first place we take visitors to and they are always amazed at this resource we have right in our city. The trails are literally world-class for biking. I run a mountain bike club for middle school students and we spend considerable time there. If those trails get lost, so does the bike club. All other trails require vehicles to access. We can simply ride up from our school (Clayburn Middle). Mountain Biking is one of the fastest growing sports in North America and adds tremendous value to our economy and our city. Bikes are expense. Maintenance is expensive. We need shops for this. We need people working in these industries. I do not know what can be done to keep the majority of our Ledgeview trails and tree cover but it's a resource worth fighting for and one of the main reasons we live in Abbotsford. That may sound dramatic but it's totally true. If those trails go, we will likely move further out into the valley and I know I speak for many other outdoor enthusiasts as well.

There are so many underdeveloped parts of the city, it seems foolish to cut down trees when there seem to be so many other places to develop. I want the city to prioritize redevelopment of existing land rather than cutting down trees. Especially in parks and places where there are established trails.

The forested recreational areas on Ledgeview/McKee Peak, as well as Sumas Mountain, are vital to residents maintaining a healthy outdoor lifestyle. Thousands of hours of volunteer time has been put into building and maintaining trail networks that are environmentally responsible, as well as fun for everyone from seasoned veterans, to kids and beginners. It would be a shame to see these areas developed and taken away, when there are so many other areas to build that do not have trail networks in them.

Please do not be quick to turn the natural beauty of Ledgeview and Sumas Mtn into housing or other development! It is devastating to see the destruction already occurring to our natural resources with the destruction of mountains to become gravel pits and housing developments. These natural resources support our mental, emotional, physical and spiritual well-being and also contribute to our climate. Please put nature and well-being first not money.

These trees and green spaces both on public and private land are so important to the mental and physical well-being of people in this community! Without places like ledgeview and Sumas we lose a part of ourselves. And we then also have to go elsewhere for recreational activities usually meaning we spend money elsewhere. I’m from chilliwack and come to abbotsford to mountain bike and hike all the time. I do the same in chilliwack too, but it also means I end up spending money in abbotsford which is good for the economy there.

The city of Abbotsford has a wonderful opportunity to protect and preserve both Sumas mountain and McKee Peak/Ledgeview. These two places offer hours of outdoor adventure for families. Ledgeview alone sees a multitude of visitors everyday. Sumas and Ledgeview attract tourists from all over the lower mainland. These places are gaining notoriety for their mountain biking, hiking and stunning views. It would be a shame to pass up an opportunity to continue having these spaces available.

Please commit to preserving the natural trail network that Ledgeview provides for our community!!! Our family Utilizes these trails weekly through hiking and mountain biking. They provide a safe, healthy, affordable way for our community to get outside and be active - together, in community!!! This would be such a huge loss for our city to lose this trail network. We need MORE spaces and trails to be active and healthy outdoors, not fewer. Every day these trails are utilized by SO many members of our community!

So grateful to have such an amazing trail at our doorsteps!
Makes keeping to a healthy life style for our family that much easier.
I cannot imagine this being taken away from our community.

The preservation of McKee and Sumas trails is so vital to the health of Abbotsford residents! For so many reasons I believe the whole trail system on both McKee and Sumas should be preserved- it has served many people for years, especially through the pandemic. Please allow the opportunity for these trials to continue being enjoyed!

Hi, I would love it if, after all these years-decades really-of Abbotsford residents and families, the city could buy & reserve Sumas Mtn/Ledgview as a natural recreational park/forest. The trails are used by so many. It’s even a tourism site as MTB’s come from out of town. Focusing on reserving a large bio diverse forest area like this should be prioritized above planting small trees on already developed land. I would also like to see the matsqui & sumas First Nations brought in to resource the city in this strategy as this is their ancestral land and took care of it for far longer than we have.

It is incredibly important to protect our tree canopy as well as our walking and hiking trails. Access to these areas is more important than ever for our mental health and overall well-being.

I’d like to see Sumas Mountain and McKee Peak protected….natural trails maintained and less encroachment by residential development and industries such as logging and quarries. I feel so lucky to make use of Ledgeview’s trail system regularly and love feeling so deep in nature so close to town…would hate to ever lose it!

I'd love to see some hiking and biking trails on Ledgeview preserved in any new development. Something like Mt Thom in Chilliwack, where it still feels like a trail, rather than an urban path like the Discovery Trail.
During the pandemic, the number of hikers and bikers on the Ledgeview trails was incredible, showing how much our community relies on that area for retreat, enjoyment of nature and mental health. Please find a way to preserve it for us!

With future developments on McKee please find ways to keep some of the biking trails. Biking on McKee is one of main reasons why I live where I live

I hope you incorporate biking/hiking trails into the McKee peak (Ledgeview) developments. It is somewhere local that my kids and I use on a weekly basis and have met so many people that have come from out of town to use it. It promotes exercise and getting into nature.