Orangeville councillor and Trailways Committee member Sylvia Bradley says she will vote against building a trail alongside the railway tracks between Town Line and John Street.

In an interview Wednesday, Ms. Bradley also spoke against statements by trails opponent Chris McCoy at the last Orangeville council meeting; labeling her allegations of committee fiscal misdeeds as “ridiculous.”

“I have had difficulties with this from the beginning,” said Ms. Bradley. “I was supportive to the point where we got all the information and options. It seems that when we resolve one issue another one comes up. I’ve concluded that we will never resolve the issues regarding the rail portion of the trail.”

Committee chair Bernadette Hardaker indicated she was not aware of Ms. Bradley’s strong opposition until recently. “She may have had misgivings,” said Ms. Hardaker Wednesday, “but she never related them to us in an articulate way.”

Ms. Bradley said she now had “enough information to make an informed decision.”

She pointed to a specific concern that a trail fenced off from the tracks and bordered on the other side by fenced-in residential properties would create an “alley you can’t get out of.”

Ms. Bradley painted a scenario where a child on the trail could be confronted by bullies and not have an avenue of escape.

Should the proposed rail portion of the proposed trail system fall through, the committee and the town would have to forfeit $220,000 in federal and provincial funds earmarked specifically for the project.

Ms. Hardaker was also concerned that the recent chain of events could jeopardize the committee’s chances of landing a Trillium Foundation grant for a trail between Amelia Street and Blind Line.

Ms. Bradley said that since the Trillium application concerns another portion of trail, the rail trail controversy might not be a factor.

Meanwhile, she expressed anger at Ms. McCoy for her assertion that the trail committee inappropriately took $75,000 in town funds that had been allocated to it by mistake.

“I thought it was shameful what she said (at council) and the way she said it. If we have a trail committee meeting (tentatively scheduled for tonight; Thursday), it will be the first thing addressed.

“That amount of money just doesn’t go missing. When budgets are discussed, (council’s budget committee) goes through them line by line. Just how stupid does she think the town council and administration is?”

Ms. McCoy, meanwhile, says she does not recall having used the words “devious” and

underhanded” in describing the committee’s activity, as reported in this paper.

She said she would never use such terms to describe the committee members and certainly did not feel that way about them.

As of press time, it had not been decided whether the committee session would take place. If it does, it will take place at 6:30 p.m. at Town Hall.