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Southeast Kansas rail-to-trail project makes history: First in KS to be supported the host county - Joplin Globe: Lifestyles

Submitted by Brent Hugh on Fri, 08/21/2015 - 7:29am

Headlines are quick hits from media outlets from Missouri and around the world. Follow the headline link for the full story. The source of this headline says:

Walking, running and cycling on rail-to-trail projects in the Midwest makes for a great way to see history, but what about the trail itself making history?

It happened in Southeast Kansas, when the Southwind Rail Trail opened in 2013. The 6.5-mile route runs from Humboldt, Kansas, to Iola, where it connects with the 51-mile Prairie Spirit Trail, a state park that runs north to the community of Ottawa, Kansas.

The nationwide Rails-to-Trails Conservancy has this to say about the Southwind: “In a first for Kansas, the local (Allen) county commission also voted to help maintain and manage the trail.”

It is historic because these kinds of trails have not always been welcome in Kansas. You need look no further than what happened in Cherokee County a decade or so ago to understand the opposition such a project can generate.

Link: 
Southeast Kansas rail-to-trail project makes history: First in KS to be supported the host county - Joplin Globe: Lifestyles
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