Big Thunder park proponent tired of waiting

And the wait continues.

Nearly three months after the deadline to submit letters of interest to resurrect Big Thunder Nordic Park, the provincial ministry of tourism has yet to provide insight to the six proponents or the public as to what the next move might be.

Friends of Big Thunder spokesman Paul de Giacomo said it’s not an understatement to say he’s getting frustrated with the process.

“Without question,” he said, expressing concern over a lack of communication from Liberal MPP Bill Mauro (Thunder Bay-Atikokan), who has long taken the stance that he’d like to see the facility, mothballed in 1996, reopened.

“At the end of the day, the politicians have got to make a move.”

Friends of Big Thunder have proposed a publicly-funded, 12-month facility, that opens in stages, as money becomes available and demand arises. Their group would provide the volunteer base.

What’s in the other proposals, or in fact who’s behind them isn’t publicly known. De Giacomo said he’s aware of three of the other groups, and while he wouldn’t name any of them, noted they’ve been holding informal discussions about future plans for the site.

“It’s just been a learning process with each other and a feeling-out process between the groups. We hope that we are successful in our fight with the province, just as much as they want to be successful in their fight with the province,” he said.

Mauro, reached at a charity event on Saturday, said he expects some movement to come out of the tourism ministry soon, cautioning proponents that three months isn’t all that much time given the nature of what’s being proposed and the six years he’s spent trying to get the province, which owns the land, to this point.

However, he’s already working on a back-up plan.

“Should that process not have yielded anything substantive, then there will be a next step on my part, which I already have sort of envisioned,” he said.

“The other piece that I am pursuing, I’ve had in the back of my mind. They’ve been going forward concurrently. It’s not to pre-suppose what the results of this might be. But if it doesn’t bring forward anybody with real money, with a real plan, with a real idea, to do something positive on the site (it’s there), Mauro said.

How much of a role the province might be willing to have in any future activity at Big Thunder remains to be seen, Mauro said.

“Whether or not at the end of the day the government is there operating this, in what were its historical uses, I’m not sure that’s going to be the case. It hasn’t happened for 15 years and I’m not sure that’s going to happen now,” he said. “The point for me is let’s get it open, let’s get the public access back for what is an unbelievable piece of property and for me that’s always been the goal.”

Both Mauro and De Giacomo expressed some degree of concern about the proposed Big Thunder Wind Park and the impact turbines on Mount Johnson might have on the ability to bring the park back to life as a year-round facility.

Friends of Big Thunder’s biggest concern is the loss of trees, which could ruin some cross country trails.

“We’re not going to be happy if we lose one tree out there,” De Giacomo said. However, he said he thinks some sort of compromise can be reached and in no way does he want his group to be seen as impeding green energy progress.

“We just cannot be the custodians of a parking lot and run events.”

Mauro said the city, as the landowner to the proposed turbine site, which rests adjacent to the Big Thunder Nordic Park, has complete control over the property, leaving the province and proponents at their mercy.

“Yes indirectly it does concern me that there might be some negative impacts on that site.”