Grants for walking trail discussed

In the past, the Holton City Commission has discussed what it would take to connect the concrete fitness trail at Countryside Park with the fitness trail at Banner Creek Reservoir.

At the commission’s regular meeting on Monday, Nov. 20, former city commissioner and current Jackson County Commissioner Dan Brenner suggested the solution might be a pair of grants — one to be sought by the city, the other by the county.

Brenner met with commissioners that night to ask if the city would be interested in applying for a Safe Streets And Roads For All (SS4A) cost-share grant through the U.S. Department of Transportation, adding that county commissioners are also in talks to apply for a similar grant.

If the city and county apply separately for the grant and both receive SS4A grant funds, Brenner said, the city and county could work together on creating a “walking and biking trail” that would connect Countryside Park with the fitness trail at Banner.

Brenner said the suggestion to have the city and county apply separately for SS4A funds and, if the grants are approved, merge the two to create one continuous trail connecting Banner with Countryside Park came from Brett Waggoner, a grant writer with Governmental Assistance Services of Lawrence who has helped both the city and the county obtain grant funds for necessary projects.

“We’ll work with him, he’ll coordinate it, and we’d like to be able to offer that to the community if possible,” Brenner said, adding that the county would like to hear from the city before the end of the year on possible plans to seek an SS4A grant for that purpose.

Commissioners agreed, noting that the city would be “on the hook” for its portion of the grant, which includes a 20-percent minimum cost share if awarded. No immediate action was taken on Brenner’s proposal.

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