Spring 2001
New Electronic Format
In an effort to save trees and free up money for greenway projects, TGC recently decided to substitute its traditional paper newsletter with an electronic version. Aside from saving around $3000 a year, the new E-newsletter will be distributed more than four times a year and will contain more timely information.
National Trails Day Volunteers Needed
Every year, National Trails Day is a big event in the Triangle. Groups and individuals from all over come together to celebrate trails for hiking, biking, horseback riding, running, skating, and walking. Events are held where people can come and help improve trails, interact with other trail groups and users, and enjoy the outdoors.
This year, National Trails Day is June 2nd. For the last several years, Jeff Brewer has done an excellent job in coordinating all the NTD activities. This year, we need some other folks to help out. Please contact Robert Harper at harper@intrex.net if you are interested in leading this effort, or come to the next TGC meeting (see article below).
"Filling in the Gaps" Trail Summit a Success!
Even though greenways are being developed all over the Triangle, local cities and towns can act independently--resulting in trails that end at city limits, or missed opportunities for collaboration. To help make sure the lines of communication remain open, and to update the vision of a Triangle-wide greenway network, on March 30th TGC conducted a Trail Summit.
There were 26 planners representing 3 counties and numerous municipalities that spent 2 hours that day to update the "Circle the Triangle" Greenway Plans. Each representative addressed the entire group about what was happening in their area and then the group broke down into smaller groups to talk about the details.
Sig Hutchinson said of the summit, "It is amazing to see the process work. The magic is getting these planners in the same room and listen to them interact. Sometimes it represents an "aha" moment when they realize what other counties or municipalities are doing just next door and other times it can be a real motivation to see what others are doing that they are not."
All in all, it was a very successful day and the group asked TGC to reconvene the group in the fall for another update.
New Web Site for Triangle Mountain Bikers
Looking for mountain bike trails? Want to know about new singletrack trail projects in the Triangle? Trying to meet folks to ride with? Check out www.TriangleMTB.com รป the new web site for mountain bikers in Raleigh, Durham, Cary and Chapel Hill.
Go to www.TriangleMTB.com for:
--Local mountain bike trail maps and descriptions
--News about trail projects
--Upcoming races, group rides and trail workdays
--Used mountain bike classifieds
--Mountain bike message board
--How to join the TriangleMTB.com email network
The web site was created to help mountain bikers in the Triangle to connect and communicate, so that together they can celebrate the sport and build more places for mountain biking. The site is affiliated with all four mountain bike clubs in the area and TGC. Please spread the word about this new web site!
Eno Riverwalk Study Underway
The Town of Hillsborough has begun a feasibility study/preliminary design for a Riverwalk along the Eno River between the downtown Orange County government campus and the Occoneechee Mountain Natural Area. The design team doing the study is W.L. Olson RLA, Charles Burger ASLA, and Alois Callemyn of Callemyn Parker, Inc. The study was funded by Clean Water Management Trust Fund. The results will be submitted to the Town the beginning of September. For more information, contact Wendy Olson at bdwo@mindspring.com
New Trail-Building Book Released
Island Press has just published Trails for the Twenty-first Century, second edition. A TGC Board member, Kristine Olka, co-authored this step-by-step guide to all aspects of the planning, design, and management of multi-use trails.
Originally published in 1993, this completely revised and updated edition offers a wealth of new information. The book contains anything you would ever want to know about how to build a trail or greenway--from planning and design, to construction and maintenance, to management and promotion. Discussions of recent regulations and federal programs, including ADA and TEA-21, recently revised design standards from AASHTO, and current research on topics ranging from trail surfacing to conflict resolution are also included.
See the Island Press web site at http://www.islandpress.org for more information on how to order this publication.
American Tobacco Trail to be part of East Coast Greenway
The completed portion of the ATT in Durham will officially become part of the projected 2700 mile-long East Coast Greenway at a brief ceremony at the Durham City Council meeting at 7 p.m. on April 16. All Triangle Rails-to-Trails Conservancy members and other interested folks are invited to attend. The East Coast Greenway (ECG) can best be described as a "Trail Connecting Cities" up and down the East Coast. It connects existing urban and rural greenways and trails, and serves asa catalyst to develop greenways and trails to connect them.
For news about the ATT and when more sections will be opening, see the TRTC web site (http://www.triangletrails.org) or ask Bill Bussey to add you to the ATT newsletter email list. He can be reached at billbus@gte.net.
Sprawl Consumes Transportation Budgets
Did you know that transportation costs are now exceeding housing costs in six US cities because of sprawl? Check out the online article at http://www.enn.com/news/enn-stories/2001/03/03082001/sprawlcost_42392.asp
E-Newsletter Volunteer Wanted
Do you like greenways? Do you like to write? Do you have about 3 extra hours a month you could donate to a good cause?
Then, please consider volunteering to be the next e-newsletter coordinator. The job is easy. You just attend the TGC Board meetings to find out what's going on, come up with article ideas, and ask folks to feed you information. An e-newsletter is sent out about every other month to our email list. You don't have to be good at computers; all you need is internet access and the rest is easy. If you are interested, please contact Kristine Olka at trianglegreenways@yahoo.com or come to the next TGC meeting. Thanks!
Join TGC at its April meeting
The Board of the Triangle Greenways Council will have its regular, monthly meeting on April 26th. Join us at the offices of TJCOG (for directions, see http://www.tjcog.dst.nc.us/whereis.htm) at 7pm. All are welcome!
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