A new walkway to Port Picton is underway.

The floating boardwalk is 10 feet wide and will feature stainless steel safety rails on both sides and  three large sitting areas with benches. It came by tugboat from the Thousand Islands late last month, built by Kehoe in Landsdown, Ontario.

The boardwalk is a “community benefit,” a product of the negotiations around the Port Picton development. CEO David Cleave proudly calls it, “an $840,000 gift to the community.” The boardwalk and parkette to which it leads will be municipally owned and operated.

It connects to Picton’s Harbour Trail, which extends to Chimney Point, near the Picton Water Treatment Plant, and meanders all the way to Bridge Street via Queen Elizabeth Park. 

Mr. Cleave explained having the walkway ferried by tugboat was cost effective.

“We were able to do more because we were able to literally float it here from Kehoe.” 

Future moorings and finger docks for up to 60 boat slips at Port Picton are “plug and play:” hardware is easily installed at no extra cost to the municipality.

Way-finding elements along the walkway and information boards will offer a look back to the heritage of the busy Picton Harbour, a bustling centre of commerce in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Port Picton CEO David Cleave proudly calls it, “an $840,000 gift to the community.”
The boardwalk and parkette to which it leads will be municipally owned and operated.

A Clean Vision

Mr. Cleave hopes the next step will be harbour remediation. By July and August, the harbour waters are stagnant with invasive weeds. Zebra Mussels create a clearer path for sunlight, creating unchecked vegetation growth.

Across the water from the new boardwalk is Prince Edward Yacht Club. Former Mayor and current PEYC Vice Commodore Robert Quaiff said the club was forced to relocate its popular summer sailing school from Picton Harbour to Waupoos Marina because of outbreaks of blue-green algea, a cyanbacteria harmful to human life.

“The water’s not deep, not wide, and it wasn’t healthy for the kids, so we moved it to the open water at Waupoos,” Mr. Quaiff said. “Since then, the sailing school has been sold out every summer.”

He and a number of long time PEYC members are happy to see an uptick in boating activity around the Harbour. More boats and activity keep the weeds down and allow the water to circulate.

“It’s great to see the harbour finally start to take shape in a way we’ve always visualized, going to back to previous councils,” he noted.

Mr. Cleave is engaging the municipality and fellow marina operators in a partnership to maintain the waters of Picton Harbour.

“The next question we need to answer is ‘How can we generate revenue by the people who use the harbour so it can be funnelled towards clean up projects?” said Mr. Cleave. “Now that we have this beautiful walkway, which is accessible through a network of trails and boardwalks, we need to look at ways to make the water cleaner and clearer.”