Pulaski County has taken another step toward improving the quality of place for residents.
Through its Hometown Collaboration Initiative, Pulaski County has decided to develop a system of bike trails throughout the county. It not only is cost efficient, but is a way to connect each of the communities in Pulaski County using HCI Funds. The Hometown Collaboration Initiative grant is targeted toward communities with a population of 25-thousand or fewer.
Pulaski County Community Development Commission Executive Director Nathan Origer says the plan works on several fronts.
“It succeeds in applying to all towns and unincorporated parts of the county instead of focusing on one community and it does still bring in the tourism aspect that we built into it,” says Origer.
Pulaski County has been working for months to determine the best route to take with the grant funds. Leadership, Economic Development, and Place making were all part of the potential uses for the money.
Now the work begins to develop the bike paths for future construction. Right now, a bike path exists extending from the Winamac Park to Monterey. No other bike paths exist, making for an opportunity to expand the network to two, three, or four alternative routes.
Origer said during this week’s Pulaski County Commissioners meeting that he would like to seek the county’s cooperation.
“We’d like to work with the Highway Department and then KIRPC,” says Origer. “Or if their traffic counters are unavailable, a consultant, to map out a number of roads in the county and paths on county roads to get the best bet off the best balance of not having too much traffic, but still being decent quality roads that offer connectivity; whether between two towns or between a town and the trail.”
It was recommended that the HCI Committee seek the help of Purdue University’s Local Technical Assistance (LTAP) program.
Construction is anticipated at some point in the future.
