Neillsville Improvement Corporation Share Information on "Rails-to-Trails" Project
Friday, November 30th, 2018 -- 9:01 AM
-After a contentious appearance at this week’s Neillsville Common Council meeting, the Neillsville Improvement Corporation shared information on their “Rails-to-Trails” Project.At Tuesday’s Common Council meeting, a resident accused the city of working on this project behind closed doors and not informing the public on what they’re doing. NIC President and City Council Alderman Dan Clough stated that’s not the case. NIC has been working on the project for the past four years and it’s included on the Wisconsin DNR’s Wisconsin Trails Network Plan, the Clark County Recreation Plan and the City of Neillsville’s Long Range Strategic Plan. The “Rails-to-Trails” Project would convert an old rail corridor to a non-motorized recreational trail. The two sections of trails measure 7.1 miles from Neillsville to Granton and 5.9 miles from Granton to Chili. 95% of the corridor is owned by Xcel Energy for a powerline route. Xcel has agreed in writing to a conditional sale of the land to NIC pending final negotiations. At this point, no money has been spent and no actions have been set in stone while NIC seeks to gather support and agreement from the major parties involved. Negotiations continue with the few private landowners in from of purchase, lease/rent, easements or re-routing. This is why NIC hasn’t had a formal roll-out of the project because, if any of the above mentioned items fall through, they don’t have a project. NIC is committed to working with all parties involved to create a win-win situation.
The challenges in front of NIC are to complete negotiations to secure the route, finish the design of the trail, raise funds to build and maintain the trail. There was a question regarding what the cost to the City of Neillsville would be for this project. Dan stated the cost would be nothing, unless the city decided they did want to invest in the project via the Economic Development Committee. For now, NIC has been spearheading the project, but they expect it will grow and evolve as more partners get involved with the project. NIC has already received support from Granton, the Clark County Health Department, the Eat Right, Be Fit Coalition and more. The project would be completed a several phases and, once completed, it is suggested a foundation will be formed to help with maintenance and transfer of ownership. If you have any questions about the project, feel free to contact Dan Clough of the Neillsville Improvement Corporation.
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