Trail project set for spring

PRIEST RIVER — The Priest Community Forest Connection announced Dec. 16 that it will begin construction of the Oldtown to Albeni Falls section of the Pend Oreille River Passage Trail next spring. Organization spokesman Liz Johnson-Gebhardt said PCFC recently won a $30,000 grant from the Inland Northwest Foundation that it will use to break ground on the first phase of the trail, which is anticipated to eventually stretch from Washington State across Idaho and into Montana.

The trail’s first phase will consist of compacted gravel eight feet wide and about two miles long, said Johnson-Gebhardt. It will link up with a tiny section of trail in place at Rotary Park in Oldtown, and will stretch east through Tri-Pro and towards Albeni Falls, she said. The INF grant will not pay for all of it, but Johnson-Gebhardt said that PCFC is applying for other grants and considering public fundraisers to make up the difference. The compacted gravel could serve as the foundation for an asphalt trail in the distant future, she added.

Johnson-Gebhardt said she is concentrating on getting 25 miles of trail from Oldtown to Dover completed. Other organizations in the Inland Northwest are working on chunks of the tri-state trail to the east and west, and recent discussions have been positive, she added.

Oldtown city planner Bryan Quayle said the trail would be helpful for the community.

“Previous surveys indicated we have a fair amount of residents who either bicycle or walk and utilize our current sidewalks. With the additional development happening on the east side of the river we want to have some connectivity for pedestrians, bicyclists, and vehicles. ” Quayle added, “Efforts to date have been a collaborative effort between ITD, the cities, the Forest Service, the Corps of Engineers, and other stakeholders.”

Johnson-Gebhardt added her thanks to the Oldtown-Priest River Rotary Club and the Priest River Development Corporation for their role in helping print the PORP Trail Concept Plan.

The official concept plan is online at http://communityforests.com/po-river-passage-concept.pdf and hard copies are available at PCFC’s office at 138 Main Street in Priest River. For more information or to get involved, contact Johnson-Gebhardt at 208-448-0210 or via email at lizjg35@hotmail.com, or go to www.communityforests.com.