KMXT 100.1 FM Public Radio in Kodiak, Alaska
The Kodiak Island Borough has spent the last few years having trails on the island road system cataloged and assessed, and now attention is turning to urban trails in town and Women’s Bay. Director Bud Cassidy says his Community Development Department is seeking input from residents about formal and informal trails they use.
— (Trails 1 38 sec "Those are trails in … keep those trails in mind.")
Andy Schroeder is the director of the non-profit Island Trails Network, which has done quite a bit of trail assessment around the road system. He also sits on the borough’s Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee. He says trails are often developed and used out of necessity:
— (Trails 2 41 sec "Especially outside city limits … improve the way they do it.")
Cassidy acknowledges that trails could cross private lands and perhaps users or land owners might not want the routes formalized:
— (Trails 3 32 sec "We can do two things … going to be used in the future.")
Folks who would like to help the borough catalog trails in town and the flats can go by the community development office and draw them on maps they have there, or better yet, attend a parks and rec meeting. Either way, Schroeder says input is important:
— (Trails 4 28 sec "We want to get everybody … way of getting around town.")
So far, about 350 miles of trails have been identified around the Kodiak road system. Cassidy says he hopes to have a public meeting in the spring to present the trail plan to the public, and ultimately have a user guide to all the trails, their condition, difficulty and sights along the way.
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