From The Emporia Gazette:
It’s been one year since the Emporia City Commission created the Multi-Use Path Planning committee, and the group is moving along with its plans for the city.
Bill Borst, chairman, said the purpose of the committee is to plan recreational trails for the city.
“Our mission statement says it’s so that anybody, whether it’s a child or an adult, can get to school or work or shopping or to a recreation facility and can have a place to walk or jog or bicycle that’s off-street,” Borst said.
Borst said the committee’s mission is important because it’s difficult to build new paths and trails in the city, where streets and sidewalks and alleys are already in place. One function of the committee is to identify sidewalks that could be identified as safe routes.
“In some cases these can be reconditioned so you could ride a bicycle or a skateboard, and that could be part of the trail system.
Borst said the group is working on trails through the parks and around the edges of town.
“The city’s comprehensive plan does have trails marked out on the plan maps,” he said. Borst said he also has been working with Emporia High School cross country coach Mark Stanbrough on a plan for the cross country trail at Dryer Park. “We are hoping that can be developed into a trail that the cross country teams can use that would also serve as a trail for walking and bicycling and for children and people who live in that neighborhood,” Borst said.
In the future, Borst hopes the group can look to see what’s possible on the east side of town, and the hope is eventually to connect trails and paths all the way around Emporia. “We want to do that, plus whatever we can do inside the city using sidewalks and other means,” he said.
Learn more: Blazing trails in Emporia, City of Emporia.
Also, according to Sunflower Recreational Trails: “The City of Emporia is submitting an application for Transportation Enhancement stimulus funds to build a trail in South Emporia. The trail would run along the Cottonwood River and connect two parks.”
Post tags: Emporia
