Allen County trails were showcased at the 2019 Sunflower State Trail Appreciation Day, hosted by the Sunflower Foundation and the Kansas Trails Council. The event was an opportunity to share information about trail developments in Allen County with lawmakers, media, and trail groups from around the state.
Here is the presentation given by Thrive Allen County‘s Lisse Regehr:
Text of Presentation
In Allen County, we have a vision: We want to be the healthiest rural county in Kansas. And we see trails as a key part of our strategy.
In barely more than a decade, Allen County has gone from zero trails to nearly 40 miles of trails and routes. First came the Prairie Spirit Trail State Park, a public investment which inspired the Southwind Rail Trail and the Lehigh Portland Trails, both of which were primarily built by volunteers, with help from Sunflower and other foundations, as well as local businesses, cities, and county public works.
Numerous other trails projects have transformed our community, with nearly every town, big or small, either building, or getting ready to build, trails of their own. Iola and Humboldt have added trails and routes connecting schools, parks, and shopping. We raised over $300,000 for a bridge to connect Iola to the largest employer in Allen County. Even the tiny community of Savonburg, population 102, has caught trail fever, opening the “Old Swedish Trail”, and running a bike share from their community library, part of a county-wide program that gets regular people, not just the active ones like us, out on our streets and trails.
Trails are now part of our community identity. In 2017, Iola was named the Kansas Trail Town of the Year. We’ve adopted the name “King of Trails” as a marketing slogan. Now, cars with bike racks are a common sight, and these people eat at our restaurants, stay in our hotels, shop in our downtowns. We now have a busy bike and outdoor shop.
In Allen County, we like to play a game we call “tag-spotting”. Whenever we stop by one of our trailheads, we’ll look at the license plates on the cars and trucks. And we keep track. We see tags from all of our neighboring counties, and well beyond. Tags from the Kansas City area, Wichita, Topeka, Lawrence, Manhattan, Salina. Tags from Missouri, from Oklahoma, from Arkansas, from Texas, from Colorado, from California. And those are just the one’s we’ve happened to notice.
We’re building all these trails, and making all these connections, because we recognize that trails are a critical economic development strategy. Yes, trails can make us healthier and happier, connect people and towns, and build community pride. But trails can also boost our sales tax revenues and property values. Trails can help attract and retain businesses and residents. Trails mean tourism dollars. Trails, for us, are an integral part of building a Culture of Health, and a community that not just survives, but Thrives.