TREC Board Ready for Bike Trail Bid Letting; Discuss Nature Park

(TREC BOARD PRESIDENT FRANK BRUMMER MAKES A POINT DURING TUESDAY'S BOARD MEETING AS VICE PRESIDENT BILL AUSTIN REVIEWS MINUTES AND BOARD MEMBER ANNE MARIE BRUMMER LOOKS ON )

Board members of TREC (Trails Recreation, Effingham County) heard Tuesday that a bid on bike trail striping throughout Effingham and construction of a trailhead along Outer Belt West is scheduled for November 5.

TREC Board Secretary Gary Welton said the scope of the project was reduced after bids came in well over the estimated cost at the previous letting. Welton said some streets have been eliminated, but the trailhead was left intact. Some two dozen parking spaces will be part of the trailhead.

TREC is the organization that has overseen development of a network of trails in and around Effingham. TREC President Frank Brummer said he would like to see the TREC Nature Park as the next focus of development. The nature park extends south and west from Evergreen Avenue, and would involve additional trail, but also a play area for children. The work would include a large culvert and access to an existing bridge, as well as clearing a 40-foot path of trees and brush along the proposed trail. 

(TREC BOARD MEMBERS MIKE JANIS, JODI THOELE, LARRY MICENHEIMER, ERIC ZELLER, ANDY VOGT AND GARY WELTON AT TUESDAY'S MEETING)

TREC would pay for the project, but would then be reimbursed by the State for 80% of the project cost. The project would incorporate a sandbar in the Little Wabash River and would also pass Shelly Cemetery, which has been around since 1873.

Brummer also suggested naming rights for various portions of the project, as much as the entire project for a suitable donation to TREC. 

The TREC Board also approved Larry Micenheimer, Brad Beesley, Andy Vogt and Anne Marie Brummer for new three-year terms as board members, and re-elected its officers including Frank Brummer as President, William Austin as Vice-President, Gary Welton as Secretary, and Andy Vogt as Treasurer.

The Board also heard about Cycling Without Age, a worldwide endeavor involving motorized rickshaws. The conveyances would take people for trips around the community, with the passengers in front and the driver in the back. The vehicles cost $12,000 and someone would need to mantain them. Drivers would need to be trained, as well. Eric Zeller, a member of the TREC Board, has more information about the project, which is in operation in more than 50 countries.