Last Thursday was a monumental day as we celebrated the groundbreaking for Phase 2 of the Interurban Trail that will connect Bluffton’s downtown to the newly developed Lancaster Park. This mile segment is also part of the bigger 81-mile Indiana Visionary Poka-Bache trail system, which will eventually connect Pokagon State Park to Ouabache State Park, further increasing the opportunity for tourism.
Walking trails are by far the most used park amenities, and we are very thankful to Mayor John Whicker and the City Council, who got the ball rolling by hiring Engineering Resources to design the trail. We would also like to thank Mark Reinhard and Adam Grabill for all their efforts in developing the plans for the trail’s layout.
It was a lot of work to get to today, and we want to thank Roger Thornton, the District 1 councilman at the time, for helping us secure easements and funding for the project. We also want to thank Tony Crowell for all the hours spent working on those easements’ agreements and Lori Shipman, our grant writer.
We are very grateful to Gov. Holcomb’s Next Level Trails initiative, which awarded this project a little over $404,000 to turn this long-awaited goal into a reality. We want to thank Erika Siebenthal and her team at the DNR for helping guide us through the grant process.
This project wouldn’t be possible without local support, so we want to express our deepest gratitude to the following donors who made this park possible by contributing towards the 20% grant match.
Major donors include the Wells County Foundation and the Caylor-Nickel Foundation.
Donors: Everwise Credit Union, Steven and Yvette Huggins, Dave and Kris Troxel, Patti Troxel and in memory of Dick Troxel.
Contributors: Robert Troxel Premier Truck Rental, First Bank of Berne, Wells County Trails, Adamswells Internet Telecom TV, Honegger, Ringger & Co, Inc, Bluffton Animal Clinic, Family Ford of Bluffton, General Manufacturing, Coldwell Banker Holloway, Moose Lodge Bluffton 242, Brad and Molly Hoag, Gerald and Diann Tonner, and James and Audrey Almdale.
We also appreciate the landowners along the route who kindly donated easements that we could use as an “in-kind” match for this project.
Land Easement Donors include: Lowe’s Home Center, S & G Rentals (Outdoor Concepts), Bluffton Acres, Mick Cupp, Jerry and Jane Case, Thomas and Margaret Antrim, Philip and Alice Grogg, iTown Church and INDOT.
This project has been a long journey and wouldn’t have been possible without the support of our community, amazing grant opportunities, and generous donors and landowners. We are excited to enhance what Bluffton has to offer and are forever thankful to everyone who contributed to it. When we all work together, great things get accomplished.
Have a great week!
