Feeling the Kellar love
Journal Star: Independent firm to study trail issue.
It’s about time! I don’t know about you, but I’m feeling all warm fuzzy inside thinking about the two sides coming together. Of course the hardcore trail activists have surely written this study off already and will be continuing their fruitless effort to rip out the Kellar line.
If this study comes back with side by side unworkable, then it is time to seriously consider an alternate route. 10+ years have been wasted already.
February 16th, 2008 at 12:13 pm
You know that isn’t how it is gonna work out. When it comes back saying that the plan is unworkable, the trail nuts are going to use the results to discredit the rail heads and resume their efforts. If traffic on the rail hasn’t picked up by then they are going to cite that as proof of inviability.
Better to pull out some toppo maps and start looking for an alternate route and proposing it.
If the study says it is doable.. great… we can have the main keller route and the alternate.. everyone wins.
February 16th, 2008 at 12:20 pm
I personally think the Kickapoo Creek river valley is a huge opportunity for trails and other outdoor space.
February 21st, 2008 at 10:41 pm
Mahkno, I agree, I would like to see a classy trail from Wildlife Prairie Park to Peoria along Kickapoo Creek. This is a beautiful area, except for all the trash by Kickapoo Creek Road. The old M&SL RR bridge could be rebuilt for the trail to cross the creek (near Harmon Highway) and there is room for parking in numerous locations. This would be a truly scenic and basically flat route for a hiker/biker trail. It makes more sense than the Kellar Branch idea with its hills and traffic congestion. Maybe it could be considered a linear extension of Wildlife Prairie Park with the state footing the bill.