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RACCOON RIVER VALLEY TRAIL
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A 33-mile extension of the Raccoon River Valley Trail from Herndon to Waukee received a major boost this week with the announcement nearly $810,000 was awarded to five towns along the trail as well as the Dallas County Conservation Board.
The Iowa Transportation Commission granted nearly $4.5 million for trail projects across the state through the State Recreational Trails Program and the Dallas County Conservation Board received $484,995 for the Raccoon River Valley Trail addition.
In addition, about $4.3 million was awarded to 30 Iowa communities and eight county conservation boards through grants from the state's Resource Enhancement and Protection (REAP) program.
Five towns along the Herndon to Waukee RRVT extension were included in the funding. They were:
* Jamaica, $50,000, Raccoon River Valley Trail
* Dawson, $50,000, Raccoon River Valley Trail
* Perry, $100, Raccoon River Valley Trail Highway 141 crossing
* Minburn, $50,000, Raccoon River Valley Trail
* Dallas Center, $75,000, Raccoon River Valley Trail
In its 21st year, REAP received an $18 million appropriation for the current fiscal year, drawing from state gaming revenues. Sales of natural resource license plates and interest on the account add another $1 million. Seventy-six applicants in the competitive grant program for cities and county conservation boards had asked for $10.2 million, more than two times the amount available.
According to the Raccoon River Valley Trail Association, the long-sought "North Loop" on the Raccoon River Valley Trail is now a reality.
The last of the $6.6 million total cost of the project is covered with a $484,995 grant from the State Recreational Trails Program of the Iowa Department of Transportation.
The RRVT Assn. website says this means RRVT supporters have raised $850,000 in three months for the required "match" for the earlier $1.6 million Vision Iowa grant. The loop and total trail mileage of 89 miles will be realities soon.
According to the RRVT Assn., Some construction work is already underway on the loop, and completion could be as quick as the next two construction seasons. Trail communities are celebrating the news and predicting much more private development of trail-related amenities in their towns.
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©Guthrie Center Times 2010
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