By JONATHAN SNYDER
A fundraiser has begun to conduct an engineering study for a trail alongside State Road 124.
The trail looks to connect the Bluffton Woods Home Community and Elm Grove Road to the existing Interurban Trail network. Wells County Trails, the group leading the efforts, intends to raise $25,000 for the project.
According to Wells County Trails Board President Mike Lautzenheiser, the trail has been a top priority for the organization since its founding in 2019. The traffic in the area, along with the amount of people walking and biking along the side of the road, has led to a “desperate” need, Lautzenheiser said.
At a Bluffton Common Council meeting in early August, council members Chandler Gerber and Josh Hunt commented on their surprise that, to their knowledge, no one has gotten injured in the area.
“We have marked this trail as the highest priority within the City of Bluffton in regards to something that isn’t existing right now,” Lautzenheiser said. “We have people that are using mobility scooters, bicycles, kids coming and going from school that use the … gravel side of S.R. 124 there. This (area) desperately needs something for them to go on that is much safer and will then get them to the existing trails and sidewalks. It is something that the community asked for over and over again because of the concern for people’s safety”
Lautzenheiser stated that he was cleared to hire an engineering firm to do a study on how to accomplish the trail. Road grade issues, impacts to various floodplains in the area, rivers, other utility pipelines and cemeteries near the proposed site have been historical roadblocks to getting a trail planned out and engineered. Lautzenheiser hopes that the firm’s study will help find a way around those issues.
The trail is expected to be approximately 4,000 feet, similar to the section of the Interurban Trail between Walmart and Lancaster park. While no official plans are in place for amenities such as benches, Lautzenheiser stated that there would be a possibility for a bus stop location along the trail. Any conversations about those amenities would take place during the design phase of the project.
The Wells County Foundation has awarded a $25,000 matching grant for the project, along with a $50,000 contribution from Bluffton. Various sponsorship levels will be awarded for sizable donations, which should be marked towards the Wells County Foundation.
“I think as trails became more prevalent in Bluffton, it’s become even more of a need,” Lautzenheiser said. “People have seen the solution — especially as the Interurban Trail was built along S.R. 1 — people started to see that there are solutions out there to solve this other issue, and it’s just a natural connection. The goal is that people would be able to use the trails from anywhere in Bluffton. Any chance that we get to bring a group of people through so (residents) can walk, run or bike safely in the trail network, and it all connects together, the better for the community.”
jonathan@news-banner.com
