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Macomb Orchard Trail News Volume 2, Issue 2 - Summer 2001 Table of Contents:
Wow...and When by: Lee Sorensen Wow! The first, and probably the biggest, hurdle to a fully realized Macomb Orchard Trail has been cleared. On Thursday, June 14th the Macomb County Board of Commissioners voted to purchase the property for the trail by borrowing the needed funds from the Trust For Public Lands (TPL), a non-profit land-conservancy organization. Now we know that, however long it takes to develop, the trail will have no breaks along its entire length. I started composing this column in my mind on Tuesday, June 12th, after the Macomb County Budget Committee had passed the resolution authorizing the purchase of the property for the Macomb Orchard Trail. The composition process continued during a 20-mile bike ride my wife and I took on country roads in northern Macomb County. The ride brought to mind how different things will be when we have the trail. Marian and I ride on gravel roads because there is less traffic than on the paved ones, and because drivers seem more courteous. But gravel road are often rough and bumpy. If itıs rainy or wet, the bikes get sprayed with road gravel which is hard on them. If itıs dry, you get covered with dust by passing cars. On our Thursday ride, the Road Commission had just applied a calcium chloride solution to one of the roads to keep the dust down. Calcium chloride solution is road salt dissolved in water, and it has the same effect on bikes as on cars. Rides like this are our standard fare about twice a week in spring, summer and fall. Conditions are decent, but not the greatest and it shows. What we see out there is a lot of pretty country, but not many walkers, runners, cyclists or horseback riders. People looking for these types of activity want a more suitable venue. For now, you find them at Stony Creek Park and on the Paint Creek Trail among other places lots of them. So when the Macomb Orchard Trail is fully realized, all of us and many more will be flocking to the trail for a lot of pretty country without the hassles of the road. Now that the purchase is accomplished, when can we expect to use the trail? While the property will be purchased outright by TPL, we canıt use it until it is purchased from TPL. The plan is to do this in three, roughly equal-length parcels from west to east. The first parcel must be purchased by December 31, 2002. The other purchases must be completed by the end of 2003 and 2004. Breaking the purchase into three pieces, makes the size of the grants easier to swallow for MDOT and the DNR, but it will slow development. That isn't to say that the purchased parts couldn't be used more or less as is, but donıt expect much before 2003. Right now, the county will work on grant applications to get the money, but they expect to have a Trail Commission in place to take ownership of the property. Here is where we come in. We need to keep pressure on the communities to approve the interlocal agreement creating the Trail Commission. Washington Township, the Village of Armada, and the city of Richmond have approved the agreement. Shelby Township, Bruce Township, the Village of Romeo and even Armada and Richmond Townships need to be encouraged to sign the agreement. We also need to keep pressure on to find or provide the necessary local funding. There are significant local costs involved, and the members of the Trail Commission have to negotiate an acceptable funding formula before the grants can be obtained. This could take a while. If a lot of enthusiastic citizens contact their local elected officials, it will give them the support they need to sign the agreement and provide the needed funding. Do not discount for one minute the value of your input to these elected officials. They are under lots of pressure every day. They crave input, letıs make sure they get the right input. We have come a long way in a short time compared to many trail projects. With your active support we can compress the remainder of the timetable to a minimum. We will again have our booth at the Romeo Peach Festival Arts and Crafts Fair, the Richmond Good Old Days and the Armada Applefest. These are all late summer and fall events. If you know of any spring or summer events where we could put up our "tent," please call one of the board members listed elsewhere in this newsletter. Dues remain at $10 per year or $20 for a family membership that includes two votes in elections and all other official actions of the membership. Click here for the membership form. Print the form, fill it out and mail it in along with your check. The Friends of the Macomb Orchard Trail is a nonprofit, charitable organization that relies on dues and contributions to provide information on the progress of the trail and to rouse community support for it. Becoming a member shows that you strongly support the trail and will help to bring it to completion. Being a member helps ensure that they always know you're there. The Michigan office of Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (RTC) has been a major supporter of the Macomb Orchard Trail since day one. If you aren't yet a member of RTC, you should consider joining now. The annual fee for membership in the national organization is as low as $18, and you can also contribute to the Michigan office when you join. Check them on the web at www.railtrails.org for more information or call 1 (800) 888-7747 extension 11 to join. Chairman: Lee Sorensen phone: 586-781-3756 E-mail: swimbikerun@jamdata.net Vice-Chairman: Dennis Tipsword, phone: 586-749-9153 E-mail: tipsword@wwnet.net Secretary: Christine Hamilton phone: 586-727-4347 E-mail: chbirie@massnetl.net Treasurer: Chuck Mabley phone: 586-727-9874 E-mail: chuckm@klondyke.net Director: Rich Platz Phone: 586-727-4246 E-mail: rbplatz@klondyke.net Director: John Tarantino Phone: 586-677-0482 E-mail: redtandom@yahoo.com Director: Dave Rumohr Phone: 586-468-8781 E-mail: Irumohr@bignet.net Ted Gondert, 356 Third Street, Romeo, MI 48065-4804 586-752-7043 vcrepair@yahoo.com Armada and Richmond Township Status Loyal supporters of the trail living in Armada and Richmond Townships, thank you for your continued support. With the County Board's decision to purchase the railroad right-of-way for a trail, you will have a trail in your community in spite of political opposition. It is not now, or ever, too late for these communities to participate in writing the Interlocal agreement and becoming members of the Trail Management Council. Continue to encourage them to join the process. If they join in writing the agreement, they can make informed judgments about the costs and benefits of the trail. They can also make their concerns known. Lee Sorensen has written a FAQ, available at Friends meetings or online at History of abandoned railroad corridor sought The Friends of Macomb Orchard Trail are developing a
history of the Canadian National - Grand Trunk railroad corridor that runs
between Richmond, through Armada and Romeo, to Shelby Township. If you have any
historical or land ownership information, news items, vintage pictures, maps or
artifacts of this railroad line, or the people or trains that traversed it,
please send them to: Friends of Macomb Orchard Trail meeting dates The Friends of the Macomb Orchard Trail meetings are on the second Tuesday of the month, 7:00 p.m. at Camp Rotary Activities Building (East of Wolcott), 20505 29 Mile Rd. July 10, 2001: 7:00 p.m., Aug. 14, 7:00 p.m., Sep. 11, 7:00 p.m. MOT Flora and Fauna by: Christine Hamilton It was mentioned at our last meeting how our rail-to-trail would be much better referred to as a linear park. This name fits it so much better when you think of the various opportunities it will provide the communities it passes through. We have the historical aspect, which many resources are currently being researched to find interesting historical value about the railroad. There is also the advantage of promoting healthier lifestyles by providing more people access to a means of physical activity. Another feature, dearest to my heart, is that of the wildlife and plants which will be protected and appreciated by the-people of the trail. I have had the great privilege to be part of the DNR's frog survey team this year. To do this, three separate nightly runs are made to ten designated spots where the surveyor listens to frog songs to determine approximately how many of which species of frog are present. I have ten spots picked out where the trail crosses over a road that I have visited twice this year. The most exciting part of it for me is that I don't know what I will hear until I get there. I never realized how many different frog songs there were. I have definitely come to appreciate the sense of hearing much more after these discoveries. I encourage you to go out, day or night, and listen to all the different sounds you hear too and appreciate the diversity. Another step we would like to take in the flora and fauna department of our "park" is that of identifying plant life. We want to find out what special plants and trees we have growing along the trail. If you or someone you know is a botany enthusiast we would greatly appreciate any knowledge of the plant kingdom you could give us. This brings me to another major offering of the Macomb Orchard Trail, when used to its fullest potential, that of learning more about ourselves and the world around us. So as you are enjoying the gifts of our new park make a point to wake up those dusty senses and appreciate the simplest things (like frogs!). |
Friends of the Macomb Orchard Trail Inc. P. O. Box 385 Richmond, Michigan 48062-0385 www.orchardtrail.org |
