Popular NDIP tobogganing spot now off-limits

PHOTO BY CARMEN MARIE FABIO

Winter tobogganing enthusiasts who have used the sloping hills of Windmill Heights golf course for decades got a shock recently when a newly erected sign proclaimed the site private property with no sliding permitted

The slopes of the Notre-Dame-De-L’Ile-Perrot private golf club Windmill Heights has been a destination for families to go sledding and tobogganing during the winter months for over 20 years and while sliders were aware the property was privately owned, winter revelers say the practice was never questioned – until now.

A sign has recently been put on the gates leading to the hill reading, “Access forbidden: Private property, offence to slide.” Families were shocked upon arrival to see this new sign, and some people chose to ignore it.

Martin Roloff , a local resident of NDIP, was not one to ignore the signs, but said he was disappointed when he had to take his kids back home following what had become an annual tradition. “I was really surprised last weekend

“I was really surprised last weekend to see the sign and the gates closed,” said Roloff . “I’ve been taking the kids there for at least 15 years. It’s a great hill; it’s the only one in the area. We’ve never experienced any injuries or safety issues, and I don’t really understand why the sign went up.”

Though some families continued to slide in defiance of the signs, Roloff sought other alternatives for his kids, ending up at NDIP’s Centre Notre Dame de Fatima at 2464 Boulevard Perrot that allows residents to use its hills for sliding on weekends from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Repeated requests for an interview from Windmill Heights were denied. Roloff speculated it may be that the owner has no idea of the history this hill holds for families in the area. As of now, the sign functions only as a warning, to remind people it is private property and that using the hill may result in consequences.