Grant sought for 100-mile bike trail – News – Monroe News – Monroe, Michigan

The Monroe Loop path can be owned, maintained by county

The Monroe County Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Panel is searching for a $40,000 federal cost-sharing grant to plan a 100-mile grand loop and an fairness transportation system within the county.

Tuesday evening, county commissioners gave their nod to the panel making use of for the grant from the Southeast Michigan Council of Governments. The panel requested commissioners to offer an area match of $7,260 as required below the grant tips.

Monroe Metropolis Council additionally unanimously accepted a decision supporting Monroe County’s efforts to use for a federal Transportations Alternate options Applications (TAP) grant to partially fund the loop path throughout its Sept. 8 assembly.

The grant software is due Sept. 25. The funds, if awarded, can be obtainable by Nov. 1, mentioned Florence Buchanan, chairperson of the panel. The grant would research places targeted on low-income and underserved populations, social and financial standing and mobility wants, she added.

The plan would offer high quality service that’s accessible to all populations for reaching core providers and desired locations and help multi-modal choices which might be inexpensive, sustainable, dependable, environment friendly, secure and straightforward to make use of, she mentioned.

“We wish to make sure that we’re addressing mobility and incapacity entry wants within the general transportation plan with our social-economic inhabitants in communities,” County Administrator Michael Bosanac famous.

The panel is creating a 100-mile grand loop across the county that will join varied communities.

The long-term objective for the route is to additionally hook up with bigger regional non-motorized networks of Toledo, Downriver Greenways, the Iron Belle Path and the River Raisin Heritage Path, Buchanan mentioned.

The primary section of the 100-mile route features a signage plan for a portion of the loop that will join Temperance, Erie and Luna Pier to Monroe County Neighborhood Faculty and tie in with the Toledo non-motorized community, she mentioned.

“It will traverse Bedford Township, Erie Township, the Metropolis of Luna Pier, LaSalle Township and Monroe Township,” Buchanan mentioned. “These smaller inhabitants facilities do not need the sources to implement this sort of challenge and have expressed curiosity in offering non-motorized enhancements.”

The proposed challenge will give attention to refining one of the best route connecting the communities, interact the communities and stakeholders within the planning course of, develop a signage plan, put together drawings and value estimates and search approval from the Monroe County Highway Fee, she added.

If the grant is awarded, the challenge will develop into a part of the Monroe County Hyperlink Plan’s financial improvement technique for bettering the standard of life and tourism for residents, improve the loop path and construct upon the panel’s imaginative and prescient of “making a secure community of routes linking our communities and regional locations,” the chairman mentioned.

The challenge, tentatively slated to be accomplished through the 2023 building season, would require monetary contributions from the Metropolis of Monroe, Monroe County, Monroe and Frenchtown Townships, in addition to varied regional basis funds and personal donors past no matter federal and state grants may be obtained.

The path can be owned and maintained by the county.