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A workday has been organized for Friday, October 22, from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. at the St. Albans parking area. Volunteers will work to weed the flower beds, so that weed barrier and bark mulch can be installed at a later date, Workers from Ben & Jerry's have volunteered. Bill Brunelle has offered to be the workday leader. if you would like to participate, call Cynthia Scott, Rail Trail Coordinator, at 933-8851.
The VAOT Bicycle and Pedestrian Program has selected the Sheldon Bridge Replacement project, the Richford Trail Extension, and six other projects for funding in 1999. The Sheldon Bridge was awarded $674,300 to construct a 1/4 mile trail extension, replace the missing bridge span, and adapt the two existing bridge spans for trail use. The Richford Extension received $170,000 to plan and construct a trail connection from Troy Street to the downtown area. Congratulations to the Council and the Town of Richford for all their hard work!
Lake Champlain Bikeways is submitting an application to develop and purchase bicycle route signs for the Bikeways network, including a public participation program to involve towns and citizens along the route. A hearing on the application is scheduled for Thursday, October 21, from 6-6:30 p.m., at the Northwest Regional Planning Commission in St. Albans. As a theme loop of Bikeways, the project would involve working with the Council and municipalities to help cyclists make the connections from the Bikeways route in St. Albans Bay and from the border station to the trail entrance in Richford.
This annual event is scheduled for October 9. Walkers will begin at the Abbey Restaurant and walk toward Enosburg. For more information, contact Celeste Stubbens in Enosburg Falls.
Thank you to Roy and Dorothy Baker for cleaning up the trail after this week's snow storm! The Bakers cleared more than 50 downed trees off the trail between St. Albans and Enosburg. To report downed trees or to help with storm clean ups, call Bonnie (524-5958) or Cynthia (933-8851).
"The trail is a great way to spend time with my family!"
Northwest Regional Planning Commission Office,
140 South Main Street, St. Albans
Dorothy Baker, Bill Brunelle, Kathleen Brunelle, John Gale, Emily Hubbard, Ernest Jones, Jr., Raymond Larose, Vicki Loner, Mike Loner, Ryan McCarthy, Gil Newbury (VAOT), Karen Renaudette, Richard Roberge, Bonnie Waninger O\IRPC), Karl Whitehouse
Chair Raymond Larose called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m.
B. Brunelle moved to accept the minutes of the July 21, 1999 meeting as written. D. Roberge seconded Motion carried.
Due to a mix up in meeting dates, Cynthia Scott, the Rail Trail Coordinator, was not present at the meeting. She will be introduced at the Council's next meeting. Her current work items include: contacting businesses about bicycle racks, organizing a work day for weeding the St. Albans flower beds, and developing a plan to increase Friend of the Trail memberships. Council members are welcome to call Cynthia at 802-933-8851.
Ms. Renaudette, NRPC Office Manager, reviewed the Council's finances and gave a quick overview on reading financial statements. A summary income and expense report for the past year is attached. In the future, reports will be given on a quarterly basis.
The Loners presented their proposal to develop the "Missisquoi Valley Rail Trail Challenge." The program would work with local businesses to recognize people who travel the 26.4 miles of the MVRT and visit every community along the Trail. A copy of the Loner's proposal is available from NRPC. The Loners noted this program could be developed into a statewide effort to promote Vermont's trails and rail trails. Council members expressed support for the concept and asked the Loners to continue developing the idea in cooperation with the Rail Trail Coordinator. C. Whitehouse moved that the Council direct the Rail Trail Coordinator to write a grantfor the program. B. Brunelle seconded. Motion carried. G. Newbury noted that grant funds may be available through the Governor's Council on Health and Fitness.
Mr. Jones presented his proposal for a parking area on property he owns in Berkshire, approximately 9/10 mile up the trail from the Pine Cone Restaurant. He noted that cars park on both sides of the road to access the trail. His proposal included ideas for selling the property for trail use or leasing it with a developed facility. Council members explained that the Council does not own property, but rather it is an advocacy group for trail needs. R. Larose proposed that he, Mr. Jones, and Mr. Newbury visit the site for a visual assessment of the property and proposal. Larose will report back to the Council.
The Northwest Vermont Public Transit Network received a grant from the Lake Champlain Basin Program to purchase and install a bicycle rack on the transit van. The Network expects the racks will benefit the transit bus by increasing use of public transportation, create inter-modal links with the Rail Trail, and serve trail users. Mr. Laydon asked the Council for assistance in raising the remaining match required for the grant ($250). The Council agreed to publicize the request in the next newsletter and to share the idea with communities.
Sheldon Bridge progress - The Sheldon Bridge project received a site visit by the VAOT Bicycle and Pedestrian Program Project Selection Committee. R. Larose noted the Committee seemed pleased with the results of the site visit, but the Council had not received notice of award as of this meeting. [see October Update and attached article for announcement!]
Youth Consewation Corps activities - B. Brunelle reported on the YCC activities at St. Albans, Sheldon Junction and North Sheldon. There was some confusion as to completion of backup activities, however, the experience was generally positive. Council members were pleased by the parking area upgrades.
WPTZ Champlain 2000 story on the Trail - R. Larose reported on his interview with WPTZ. The station is airing a series called "Champlain 2000" and will include a story on the Trail. The expected air date is unknown at this time.
Eagle Scout Project - Ryan McCarthy presented his proposal to build two picnic tables for the Trail to earn his Eagle Scout badge. An Eagle badge is earned when a Scout demonstrates leadership by planning and financing a project. Usually, younger Scouts are involved in the project and the Eagle Scout organizes their involvement. The Council commended McCarthy for addressing a Trail need and offered its assistance in guiding the project through any VAOT permission process. As a next step, Mr. McCarthy will identify sites for the two tables and talk more with the Council.
Introduction of Gil Newbury, VAOT District 8 Transportation Administrator - Mr. Newbury is the new Administrator for District 8, replacing John Bushey who retired this summer. His background is as a bridge engineer and has been involved in assessing historic covered and steel truss bridges for the VAOT Adaptive Use program. Newbury asked the Council to identify what the District can do for the trail. He described the VAOT contract with the Correction's Dept. Light Offenders Program as one way to meet some maintenance needs. He also described a program he initiated in Central Vermont for Kestrel (Sparrow Hawk) nesting boxes on the back of signs. The Council was interested in pursuing this program for the trail. Newbury noted the District's new motto was "We'll find a way!" The Council will identify suggested roles for the District at the next Council meeting. Members commended Newbury for wanting to take an active role in maintaining the trail.
Trees Down - Council members reported that a broken beaver dam had knocked down trees along the trail. Volunteers cleaned up the trees.
There being no other business, J. Gale moved to adjourn at 8:45 p.m. D. Roberge seconded. Motion carried.
Minutes Approved:___________________________
The Missisquoi Valley Rail Trail is one of Franklin Counties most important assets. The proper promotion of the MVRT and of the surrounding areas could be very beneficial to all of the communities that play host to the trail. A promotion is needed that not only brings people to Franklin County to use the MVRT, but that also encourages those same people to spend some time browsing the local shops, stores, and restaurants. The "Rail Trail Challenge" could be just that promotion.
The"Rail Trail Challenge" would provide an award for all users who walk, bike, jog, ski, or ride the entire length of the MVRT and visit at least two shops in each town along the way. The trip could be done in one day, or in any number of visits. The user would keep a small log of their trips and of their visits to local shops. At the shops they would be given "tickets" that would prove that they visited each area. Once the user collects two tickets from each of the 6 towns along the MVRT, they could send them in for their award of completion. The award would be a patch that signifies that they completed the''Rail Trail Challenge." The store owners would hand out the "tickets" to interested parties, and would encourage new visitors to take up the "challenge" by handing out pamphlets to people who are unaware of the promotion.
This promotion would encourage both the use of the MVRT, and it would get the users into the local shops and restaurants. Awards such as these are becoming quite common. Several hiking and biking clubs across the country offer awards such as these for the completion of hiking trails, biking paths, and other activities. Hikers, and Bikers are often in search of new awards for their collections. The promotion could be run with little effort and the costs would be limited to the price of the printing of the promotional material, the design and making of the patches, and the mailings to the award recipients. Furthermore, this promotion provides local business owners with a free service that will require them to do no more than hand out "tickets" and promote the challenge.
The Following are approximate costs of the promotion:
| Item | Description | Sub-Total | Sub-Total | Total |
| A. | Opening Balance | $0.00 | ||
| B. | Income (Assets) | $3,704.08 | ||
| Friend of Trail Memberships | $1, 308. 00 | |||
| Conductor ($50+) | $250.00 | |||
| Family ($35) | $455.00 | |||
| Individual ($15) | $330.00 | |||
| Other | $273.00 | |||
| Grant Reimbursement | $2,369.35 | |||
| VT Youth Conservation Corps | $2,369.35 | |||
| Interest Income | $26.73 | |||
| C. | Expenses (Liabilities) | $2,499.35 | ||
| VT Youth Conservation Corps grant | $2, 499.35 | |||
| VT Forests, Parks & Recreation | *$195.00 | |||
| NW Regional Planning Commission | $1,780.32 | |||
| Bonnie Waninger | $78.31 | |||
| City Feed & Lumber | $445.72 | |||
| D. | Ending Balance | $1,204.73 |
*The Council purchased three picnic tables from FP&R for the VYCC activities. Since the East
Berkshire site was removed from the work list, only one picnic table could be reimbursed by
VYCC.
Copied using scanner & OCR software by Kenyon F. Karl <railtrails@crosswinds.net> from materials supplied by the NVRTC. Unintentional errors are likely!
