Lakeside beachgoers lobbying for accessible path

People who use the beach at Lakeside, P.E.I. say they don't want to go another summer without an accessible path to the beach.

They are asking for government help to replace the wooden stairway that was seriously damagedby weather two years ago.

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"The dune got washed out from underneath it and washed away, leaving a sharp drop off from the top of our walkway," said Sidney MacEwen, MLA for Morell-Mermaid and a member of the Morell and Area Development Corporation.

"So it's been two years now trying to get funding to get it replaced or fixed."

The Development Corporation is responsible for the access point to the beach, which is at the end of a government road, surrounded by private property on either side. MacEwen says the current boardwalk was built in 2001 with funding from the P.E.I. tourism department.

"For years, we've been fixing and fixing and fixing," said MacEwen. "We know we can keep doing small fixes but I think we need a more permanent solution."

MacEwen and many local residents would like to see a more accessible path to the beach.

"It was a steep staircase, it wasn't accessible," MacEwen said. "How nice would it be to have it fully accessible, whether it's wheelchair or our senior population ... so we're trying to come up with a design that everybody can access this beach."

The Morell Development Corporation has drawings for a new accessible platform and ramps, with a price tag of about $25,000.

But, so far, the group has had no luck finding any funding.

"Originally department of tourism funded this fully so we've approached department of tourism, we've approached department of environment, we've approached department of rural development, and everybody seems, 'yeah we'd like to do something but not from my budget,'" MacEwen said.

"Personally I've talked to five different ministers, our group has met with a ton of people, it's getting frustrating for sure."

Hugh Logan has lived at Lakeside for 15 years and has been helping with the lobbying efforts.

One of his biggest concerns is emergency medical services.

"I don't know that I would want to be the person on the beach in need of medical services because it's pretty hard to get down there and back up," Logan said.

He's also worried about the integrity of the dunes because people are making their own pathwaysto avoid the steep drop where the stairway used to be.

"The more people that run around on the dunes unchecked, the less likely it is we're going to have dunes in the future."

Patricia MacInnis is a long time summer resident at Lakeside. She was born with spina bifida and walks with twocanes or uses a wheelchair for long distances.

She had been able to use the stairs at Lakeside, with some difficulty.

"I was unable to go to the beach last summer and it absolutely broke my heart," MacInnis wrote to CBC in an email. "I can't imagine not being able to do it in the future."

Minister for Rural and Regional Development Pat Murphysays his department provided some funds last year to help remove the damaged stairway at Lakeside beach.

"How it usually works would be that organization would come up with the funding and our department would contribute 50 per cent of that funding cost up to a maximum amount," said Murphy.

MacEwen says the Morell and Area Development Corporation is in the midst of applying to the new Rural Development Fund,as well asACOA, but he says time is running out.

"We could probably fix the stairway for $5,000 and just put it there," MacEwen said. "But then we're back to square one. It's not accessible and it could get washed [out] or damaged in next year's storms."

"We're not asking for a lot, we're just asking for an accessible way to get to the beach and more of a permanent solution."

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