Ottawa County is in the early stages of developing an "Active Transportation Plan" and taking input from the community.
SALEM TOWNSHIP - With one new bike path already on the way — Elmore to Genoa — Ottawa County is now beginning the planning process for another and is getting help from the community to do so.
Ottawa County was awarded a $48,750 grant from the Ohio Department of Transportation and the Ohio Department of Health to develop an Active Transportation Plan. The first step in the process began with a public meeting Wednesday to gather input from the community.
Exactly where this potential new bike path would go will be up to the community to decide as the planning process continues.
Developing Ottawa County’s Active Transportation Plan is being spearheaded by a steering committee made up of 19 local officials and county residents, along with Poggemeyer Design Group, a planning and design firm based in Bowling Green.
“It’s really just a guiding document for bicycling, pedestrian and multi-mobile connections,” said Linda Amos, of Poggemeyer, describing an Active Transportation Plan.
Multi-mobile connections refer to things like ferry services and marinas.
Active transportation planning’s primary focus is on healthy lifestyles. The goals of a plan are first to increase physical activity and reduce distances between key places, but also encourage financial investment, according to Amos.
With the various landmarks, such as the Port Clinton and Marblehead lighthouses, as well as parks and wildlife areas, there are many desirable destinations for cyclists, however, there is not a lot of connectivity between those spots for non-motorized travel.
Development of Ottawa County’s Active Transportation Plan is scheduled to continue through early to mid-September, when another public meeting will be held to present a draft to the community.
The draft will then be reviewed and revised by the steering committee based on community input and eventually be finalized for potential adoption around early November.
Part of the planning process will include developing a strategy to secure funding and implement the plan to make the future bike path a reality.
Danbury resident Dennis Patthoff, a civilian on the steering committee, believes the key to preventing the plan from just sitting on the shelf is enthusiasm and local support.
Grants from the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, such as its Recreational Trails Program and Clean Ohio Trails Fund, cover engineering and land acquisition costs, as well as portions of the cost for construction.
Combining those grants with that of ODOT’s Transportation Alternative Program, which covers as much as 95 percent of construction costs, can significantly reduce the amount of local money needed for these kinds of projects.
Amos said the local costs can be brought down to a “reasonable” number, especially considering the potential economic benefit gained in return from the projects when they are completed. Benefits from investments could be an estimated four to five times greater than the cost of the project, according to Poggemeyer.
The county commissioners are serving as the lead agency for the Active Transportation Plan, which is still very much in the early stages and still gathering input from the public.