Unbelievably, we lost.
There were well over 50 trail supporters at yesterday’s Guthrie County Supervisors meeting. Dozens spoke, including leaders of Panora, Yale, Bagley, Bayard, and Coon Rapids; businesses right on the route; snowmobilers; bike riders; walkers; and nature lovers. The plea was universal: Please do not cancel the already signed $365,000 federal grant to finance securing the trail corridor, to permit Coon Rapids-Whiterock the option of a future trail connection to Des Moines.
Three of the five Guthrie Supervisors weren’t buying any of it. Jerry Caraher, Cliff Carney and Mike Dickson discarded all reasoned estimates of maintenance costs, user numbers, and visitor spending, and countered with their own wild claims: 1) that the trail would just benefit Coon Rapids, located in neighboring Carroll County, to the detriment of Guthrie County, 2) that the grant’s 20 year time frame for raising trail bridge money put the county at unreasonable risk; 3) that maintenance costs for a 17 mile trail could be as high as $80,000 per year.
It was a shocking example of government at its very worst. The new Supervisor board overturned three previous Supervisor decisions on this project, and a $365,000 federal grant signed with the previous board, without even having a full presentation of the trail plans and numbers. To be clear, no match funding was being asked of the Supervisors; our only request was that they would agree to own the future trail. When we lost, a spontaneous shout of UNBELIEVABLE emerged from the crowd.
We are now on to plan B. All is NOT lost. We can keep the $365,000 right-of-way acquisition grant and secure the corridor, as long as we can find another public entity to sign the grant and assume corridor ownership.
Maintenance costs are years and years down the road, but nevertheless would be a point of concern for any entity we might approach. Best estimates are that future maintenance costs, after the trail is paved 10-15 years from now, are $1,000 per mile per year, i.e., $17,000 annually for the whole 17-mile route from Coon Rapids to the existing RRVT trail coming out of Des Moines.
It is up to us, as trail supporters, to prove that we stand ready and willing to assist with these trail maintenance expenses.
For this reason, Creating Great Places today launches our dedicated “Herndon to Coon Rapids Trail Fund”. Because we are a legally incorporated non-profit, any donations to this fund are tax deductible.
The fund will further be divided into two portions.
1) Construction financing. This capital fund will go towards right-of-way acquisition, engineering and construction costs. As it builds up, we will use it as match for future grants.
2) Trail Maintenance fund. This fund will be used for future trail maintenance costs.
Because most maintenance costs are years and years down the road, we will invest this money in order to grow the fund over time. The existence of this fund will make any public entity assuming ownership of the corridor feel far more at ease. It is important that we grow it as soon as possible.
Please, help us to move forward with the Guthrie County Segment of the American Discovery Trail, even without the cooperation of the county, by making YOUR donation today. Large or small, any amount will help. All donors will receive public acknowledgement. The more names on the donor list, the more evident it will be that this trail enjoys broad public support.
We will publish a list of trail supporters in the paper, so please use the form below to let us know how you would like your personal name or business name to appear (or whether you prefer anonymity). If you wish, donations to the Trail Fund can also be made via the CGP website. www.creatinggreatplaces.org Or simply reply to this email with the amount of your pledge.
Thank you for your support for this project. Thank you to everyone who showed up! I have never felt more proud to be associated with a group of people as I did yesterday at the Supervisor hearing.
Sincerely,
Rachel Garst
Volunteer Executive Director
Creating Great Places
(712) 999-7031
Please forward this message to other trail supporters who may help us save this project.