Trail group seeks grant for ownership research

HURLEY — While the deadline is roughly a month away, the Iron County Regional Trail Committee agreed Thursday to pursue a coastal management grant through the Wisconsin Department of Administration to help develop the Wisconsin portion of a regional trail.

The committee agreed to seek a $50,000 grant requiring $25,000 in matching funds, according to information presented at the meeting.

As the committee remains a loose coalition of citizens, Iron County will serve as the entity actually applying for the grant.

The grant money would be used to research ownership of the Soo Rail Line railroad grade as well as further develop plans for the Hurley trailhead where the trail crosses the Montreal River from Ironwood.

Determining ownership of the rail grade running through the county to Ashland County is the first step in acquiring the land for trail use, said Will Andresen, with the University of Wisconsin Iron County Extension Office, who has been one of the leaders of the effort to develop the regional trail.

“We don’t know exactly who owns what,” Andresen said, “so before we contact the railroad company ... we need to know (who owns the property) ... especially when it comes to the spurs (that shoot off the main rail grade).”

At a previous meeting, committee members agreed to work with motorized trail groups in seeking a Department of Natural Resources grant for the actual acquisition of the rail grade.

While the exact route of certain sections of the non-motorized trail remains to be seen, the general design is to create a regional trail running from Montreal, Wis., to Sunday Lake in Wakefield.

The non-motorized group plans on completing the Wisconsin portion of the regional trail in two phases.

The first will extend the trail from the river to Cary Park, where parking and facilities make it a natural trailhead, with the second phase continuing to Montreal, Wis.

“If you’re familiar with Cary Park, there is a parking lot, restrooms, a volleyball court, playground, lots of positive trailhead-like (amenities),” Andresen said at a previous meeting. “Maybe if we use that as phase one ... that would then get us part way to the ultimate goal of getting us to Montreal.”

Andresen praised the coastal management grant as an effective funding mechanism the county has been able to take advantage of in the past. He added the county has an advantage in that it is only one of four counties bordering Lake Superior, which limits the pool of applicants that can compete for the grant funding.

The deadline to apply for the coastal management grant is Nov. 2.

The committee also created three subcommittees — mapping and planning, fundraising and public education and awareness — to divide the work of creating the trail and allow for more independent work.

While meeting dates for the subcommittees still need to be set, the general committee agreed to switch to bi-monthly meetings — making the next meeting at 5:30 on Dec. 3.