Manning Park trails Council decision

The City of Cockburn's response to Flow Mountain Bike on 18 May 2022 about the Manning Park trails Council decision

Question: While the council did ultimately vote to follow the Community Engagement Group advice, are you able to comment on why the council staff’s official recommendation was to go against what the community wanted?
Answer: The City officer took into account a range of considerations to formulate the recommendation, but the City acknowledges that prohibiting and permitting mountain bikes has both positive and negative impacts.
 
The Community Engagement Group did not reach consensus on all fronts. It did agree that Manning Park required careful management from an ecological/environmental perspective and that this primary concern would influence the extent that the land could provide for a variety of users.
 
The officer’s recommendation was to ‘exclude mountain bikes, with the exception of designated cycle paths’. The walking trail network in Manning Park is not proposed to be closed.