Doug Walker, superintendent of the Osawatomie Division of Kanza Rail-Trails Conservancy reports the following: The bridge on the Flint Hills Nature Trail which had the railings burned by vandals last October was vandalized again last week with railing posts bent, railings broken and bent. Two more miles of screenings were laid two weeks ago and volunteers installed floor planking on the long bridge. Trucks can now cross this bridge to lay screenings the other three miles to Ottawa. When the weather clears the division hopes to start hauling screenings again. It is expected the trail section will be completed this fall.
John Purvis, superintendent of the Landon Trail Division of Kanza Rail-Trails Conservancy reports that the 240-foot-long Wakarusa River Bridge in scenic Clinton Wildlife Area was rebuilt in early August by volunteers. This is the longest bridge on the 38-mile Landon Nature Trail which stretches between Topeka and Pomona. The wooden deck ties were greatly decayed with many missing, so the wood was replaced or reinforced. The railroad trestle bridge was covered with six inches of concrete which was reinforced with both highway mesh and steel rods. Only one bridge (Croco Bridge) in Shawnee County remains to be decked and railed. The remaining four miles in Shawnee County have had development completed to the point of being ready to open. Center steel bollards are installed, cross boards and wooden bollards with sign backs installed and all bridges are decked with concrete. All that remains to open the 95% of the trail remaining Shawnee County is bridge railings. Numerous steel culverts have been installed or replaced and a forest of fallen and obstructing trees trimmed or removed. Plans call for the trail in Shawnee County to be completed this fall.
The following was excerpted from the Topeka Capital-Journal:
Bunten's bikeway veto stands, by Tim Hrenchir, updated 16 August 2009.
Mayor Bill Bunten's veto of a $15,000 expenditure to develop a bikeway master plan for Topeka became official this past week after the 30-day period in which the city council could have overridden it expired.
Meanwhile, a grassroots "$5 to Override" campaign continues to try to cover those costs through public donations.
"We have about $1,100, and that is with no formal fundraising," Nancy Johnson, who is involved with the effort, said Friday.
Bunten on 10 July vetoed a proposal the city council had approved in a 5-3 vote three days earlier that would have spent $15,000 to help cover costs to hire a planning consultant to develop a bikeway master plan for the city. The expense would have amounted to a 20 percent local match for the $75,000 project, with federal funds covering the other $60,000.
In issuing the veto, Bunten said he supported the development of a bikeway master plan but thought city staff members should carry out the task.
The Complete Streets initiative of the Heartland Healthy Neighborhoods coalition subsequently announced it was kicking off "$5 to Override," the campaign to generate $15,000 to give the city to cover costs to hire the consultant. The campaign asks that 3,000 residents to contribute $5 each. Donations may be made at WIBW-TV or at any Capitol Federal Savings locations.
The following was excerpted from the Kansas Cyclist website:
The 23rd Street Bike Park in Pittsburg, Kansas offers several miles of single track mountain biking trails, a mountain biking skills area, a pump track, and dirt jump area. It's one of the premier mountain biking destinations in the state.
The trails are located on the site of an abandoned coal mine, so the terrain is rough and rolling, with lots of jumps, tight turns, and small hills. The site was formerly the home of a loose collection of trails, known locally as “The Dumps”. In 2009, a local group, which became the Kansas Overkill Racing Club, received approval from the city of Pittsburg to turn the site into a city park. With donated equipment and materials, and many hours of volunteer labor, the group built and now maintains the park and trails.
To get to the trails, go east from North Broadway on 23rd Street, past Michigan Avenue. The trails are located on the north side of 23rd, just before the railroad tracks. For photos see: http://www.23rdstreetbikepark.com/
Lawrence Park Superintendent Mark Hecker reports that it will open bids for construction of the Burroughs Creek Trail on 1 September and award the contract on 15 September. The notice to proceed with construction is 16 September and the construction deadline is 31 December 2009. James Grauerholtz, the principal advocate for the trail, believes the trail will actually be completed by Thanksgiving. He is now working on securing support for a “People's Bridge” which would span the Kaw River and link the trail with the Kansas River Levee Trail. The ultimate goal is to create a river-to-river trail stretching from the Kansas River to the Wakarusa River and renaming it the Two Rivers Trail.
The following was taken from the PBS website:
The National Parks: America's Best Idea is a six-episode series directed by Ken Burns and written and co-produced by Dayton Duncan. Filmed over the course of more than six years at some of nature's most spectacular locales - from Acadia to Yosemite, Yellowstone to the Grand Canyon, the Everglades of Florida to the Gates of the Arctic in Alaska — The National Parks: America's Best Idea is nonetheless a story of people: people from every conceivable background - rich and poor; famous and unknown; soldiers and scientists; natives and newcomers; idealists, artists and entrepreneurs; people who were willing to devote themselves to saving some precious portion of the land they loved, and in doing so reminded their fellow citizens of the full meaning of democracy. It is a story full of struggle and conflict, high ideals and crass opportunism, stirring adventure and enduring inspiration — set against the most breathtaking backdrops imaginable.