Projects

History of CN Spur Line (Rail Trail) in Greater Napanee

Background

The CN Spur Line has a 15-year history in Greater Napanee, and the land was originally purchased from CN for $1, and cost approximately $40,000 to survey.

The rail line has publicly and privately owned portions in Greater Napanee and runs from Dairy Avenue to the boundary with Stone Mills. The rail line from the Greater Napanee boundary to the start of the Cataraqui Trail in Strathcona is all privately owned land, and all planning decisions are the responsibility of Stone Mills Township.

Following a public meeting initiated by an unsolicited offer to purchase a 2.5 km portion of the trail north of the 401 in 2023, the Town struck the Ad Hoc Committee on Trails, which had a mandate to determine the best way for Greater Napanee to connect to the Cataraqui Trail in Strathcona as well as a suitable location for in-Town trails in Greater Napanee. 

Ad Hoc Committee on Trails and Their Recommendations

The Ad Hoc Committee has made several recommendations to Council and has presented them several times. The recommendations include:

• That there were several routes (page 11 in the presentation) the Town should consider instead of the CN Spur line north of the 401, including one along Goodyear Road.
• That the Town should prioritize the development of in-Town trails (page 12 in the presentation) before it pursues a connection to the Cataraqui Trail given that the way over or under the 401 was still uncertain. The Town should be the lead on trail development.
• Close the CN Rail Bridge that crosses the 401 from public access.
• Establish a multi-jurisdictional working group to steer the trail from the new or interim trail head, east to Strathcona.

The Town’s Response to Ad Hoc Committee on Trails Recommendations

The Town has taken several actions since receiving the Ad Hoc Committee’s report, including:

• The Town has declared the CN Spur line surplus, making it available for a Class 2 land sale under the Town’s Land Sale By-law.
• The Town has included funds in the 2026 Budget (page 19 in the presentation) to build all in-Town trails recommended by the Ad Hoc Committee and proposes to pay for it through an existing development charge reserve.
• The Town continues to work with Ontario’s Ministry of Transportation on the logistics of having a trail go under or over the 401 and is staying informed of a 401 widening project that will mean the highway is wider than the current rail bridge that crosses it.

What’s Happening Now

The Town is currently reviewing the future of the CN Spur Line north of the 401 and has not made any decisions on its future. If the land were to be sold, the Town would be required to present a report and by-law in an open session of Council detailing all proposed aspects of the sale before any decision is finalized.

For the history of the CN Spur Line in Greater Napanee, please view the timeline below, which includes hyperlinks to all relevant source material.

CN Rail Trail Timeline

Click the blue highlighted text to be view reports, presentations, and by-laws.

2009 - The spur line to Goodyear was closed by the Canadian National Railway (CN).

May 2010 - Town staff were approached by CN to see if the Town would be interested in acquiring all railbed property within municipal boundaries.

December 10, 2010 - After receiving a report, Town Council gave authorization to Town staff to negotiate with CN for the railbed property from Camden Road east to the municipal boundary for an amount not to exceed $50,000.

May 10, 2011 - Council passes a motion coming out of a closed session meeting to approve the purchase of the entire CN spur line property within Town boundaries for $50,000 plus a tax receipt for the remainder of the assessed value.

September 5, 2012 - Title to the CN Spur line north and south of the 401 was gifted to the Town of Greater Napanee by CN for $1. The Town incurred approximately $40,000 in expenses to have the land surveyed.

May 25, 2021 - Council received a staff report identifying the potential sale of scrap metal from the rail trails on the property it purchased in 2012 for a total of $150,000, less the cost of removal. Council passed a motion authorizing the removal of all related iron from portions of the rail bed it owned.

February 13, 2023 - The Town received an unsolicited offer to purchase the former CN spur line lying north of the 401 and going to the Town’s eastern boundary.

March 16, 2023 - The Town’s Community Development Team reviewed the unsolicited offer for the CN spur line north of the 401 and prepared a recommendation for Council as this was the process under the Land Sale By-law at the time.

March 28, 2023 - The report from the Community Development Team was presented to Council in closed session (as per the Town’s then By-law and Section 239 of the Municipal Act).  In the meeting’s open session, Council declared the land surplus, a requirement to consider the sale of any municipal property. Following the declaration, staff were required to prepare a public notice to make the public aware of the decision.

May 11, 2023 - Special meeting held at the SPC arena to hear deputations on the proposed sale of the CN spur line north of the 401.

May 23, 2023 - After receiving a report of the special public meeting on CN spur line, Council decided to appoint a group of community stakeholders (the Ad Hoc Committee on Trails) to make a good faith effort to seek an alternative route that would not cause adverse impacts to neighbouring property owners.

June 6, 2023 - Council receives a report on the Ad Hoc Committee on Trails and the Committee’s Terms of Reference (TOR). The Committee was tasked in their TOR with identifying an in-Town trail route and a potential extension to the Cataraqui Trail in Strathcona, including potential routes and costs, and making recommendations to Council. The initial term of the Committee was to go to May 31, 2024.

July 9, 2024 - The Ad Hoc Committee on Trails provides a presentation to Town Council on the work of the Committee to date and made recommendations on routes to reach the Cataraqui Trail in Strathcona that did not include the CN spur line.

March 11, 2025 - Ad Hoc Committee provided a progress report and recommendations to Council via a presentation. The Committee identified the evolution of their mandate to include active transportation, phases of in-Town trails and a way to connect from Greater Napanee to the Cataraqui Trail. The Committee recommended closing the CN rail bridge and reaffirmed that the Town should consider alternative routes to the CN spur line to reach the Cataraqui Trail in Strathcona.

May 27, 2025 - Town Council receives a report on an amended Land Sale By-law that no longer allows unsolicited offers on developable land (Class One Lands) and clarifies when direct sale on property that is effectively landlocked, a report is required to be presented to Council (Class Two Lands). The By-law requires that any declaration of surplus land must occur in open session and the details of any purchase agreement on Class 1 and 2 lands must be presented in open session before Council makes a final decision on a land sale.

June 11, 2025 - Town Council adopted the amended Land Sale By-law, which did not include the CN spur line as a surplus property.

August 26, 2025 - Town Council ratified a comprehensive surplus land listing as part of an exercise to set a blank slate for the Town’s future land transaction records. As part of this, the CN rail line was taken off the surplus listing because it was not included in the list.

September 9, 2025 - Council received a report looking to suspend discussions on the rail trail pending more clarity from the Ministry of Transportation on the 401 widening.

October 14, 2025 - Ad Hoc Committee re-provided their recommendations to Council in a presentation.

October 28, 2025 - Council received a report from Parks staff that outlines the costs associated with creating in-Town trails as identified by the Ad Hoc Committee on Trails. Staff identified that the costs to complete all in-Town trails identified by the Ad Hoc Committee would be $64,000 in materials, and that the rest could be handled in-house (with a value of $151,000).

October 28, 2025 - Council received a report from the CAO and the GM of Growth and Infrastructure, providing an overview and history of the trail and identifying challenges local landowners have experienced with vandalism resulting from the trail passing through their property. At that meeting, Council voted to surplus the former CN spur line north of the 401.

November 3, 2025 - The Town issued a public notice that the CN spur line north of the 401 is scheduled for surplus.

December 1, 2025 - Town receives an updated estimate on the cost of removing rails on the 3.6 km CN Spur Line from Dairy Ave to the municipal boundary with Stone Mills. The estimates included a cost of $90,000 to remove the rails and a value of $85,000 to sell them (RFP would be necessary for a true number on the cost of removal and value).

December 9, 2025 - Town Council received a report in open session outlining discussions that occurred in closed session. The closed-session discussion involved authorizing staff to negotiate the sale of the CN spur line north of the 401 as a Class 2 sale under the Land Sale Bylaw. Under the By-law, any offer of sale must be presented to Council in open session, including the details of the sale, prior to any final decision being made.

January 7, 2026 - A draft of the 2026 budget is presented to Council, which includes proposed funding for in-Town trails recommended by the Ad Hoc Committee on Trails. The trails are proposed to be funded through a development charge fund.

Please note that this information will be updated as additional reports are brought to Council. If you believe we have missed any information relevant to the timeline, please email communications@greaternapanee.com.