Trails in the News - Press Clipping Files

11/19/2008

Trails in the News: Wheelway Completion Beautiful and Long Overdue

Editorial: Petoskey News Review, November18, 200

Trail connection completion beautiful and long overdue

If you haven’t seen it, take a look this fall at the newly created bike/pedestrian Little Traverse Wheelway. Make it a point that you go see this thing of beauty.

The right adjectives are hard to find. Stupendous? Spectacular? Sensational? The descriptors simply pale in comparison to experiencing the bluff-hugging trail in person.

But a description that does fit is “long overdue.” And with this new 1.6-mile paved trail between Petoskey’s Magnus Park and Resort Township’s East Park being substantially complete, the Little Traverse Wheelway becomes, in our opinion, the most important free public recreational opportunity in Northern Michigan.

This stretch of the trail was the missing link, and joins pieces of the overall bicycle path spanning some 26 miles around Little Traverse Bay and beyond. Of course, some parts of the path are more scenic than others, but overall we can’t image a prettier pedal.
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The Petoskey-to-Bay Harbor stretch is one of the last stretches of the Wheelway to be finished and cost about $1 million to build.

Since the 1970s, public- and private-sector advocates have worked together to arrange the recreation trail around Little Traverse Bay. To date, millions of dollars from several levels of government have been invested to develop the path used by bicyclists, joggers, walkers and inline skaters. Property ownership and engineer challenges were eventually overcome and have resulted in this crowning jewel.

The other segment awaiting completion, between Pleasantview Road in Little Traverse Township and the eastern outskirts of Harbor Springs, is expected to be built by next year.

While we are resoundingly positive about the bike path, we most also play a note of caution for a situation which we feel has gone unaddressed far too long — trail maintenance. Protecting this is spotty at best in some locations.

A hodgepodge of government and civic organizations have jurisdiction over this expensive piece of infrastructure. We believe this situation is not in the best interest of the public and the taxpayer.

A multi-jurisdictional body must be created to oversee maintenance and safety issues for the Wheelway. Without this type of organization, responsibility for a path we are all allowed to enjoy will fall disproportionally on some taxpayers or, worse, result in the more deterioration of this asset. This deterioration is already evident in some locations.

We’ve chipped in as taxpayers to build this beauty. We need to get together to keep it lovely.

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