Cawaco RC&D Council and ACES present the Industrial Archeological Guide to the Coke Ovens of Jefferson County authored by Dr. Jack Bergstresser Jr. and Francesca Gross. Contact www.cawaco.org to order your copy. All proceeds go to future community development.

Here is a look at the cover and Table of Contents:

Coke Ovens Book

Visit the Five Mile Creek Greenway on the new regional trail web site:

www.redrocktrail.org

The Blueprint for Greenways in the Heart of Alabama was completed in December 2011 through funding from the Building Communities program at the Regional Planning Commission of Greater Birmingham.  The Blueprint for Greenways is a manual for implementation of Greenway Plans Using Five Mile Creek Greenway as an example. The manual is posted on the Greenways Page of this web site greenway-parks/how-to-book

Recreational trails and parks may be Alabama’s silent industry, but it might take some shouting to get that message out.

That megaphone could come in a form of a study that trail supporters are proposing to detail the impact that recreation has on the state’s economy. Members of the Alabama Trails Commission and advisory members discussed the study July 13 in a meeting at the Alabama Center for Commerce. The commission was formed to promote recreational trails of all types in Alabama.

“One of the problems that we have is convincing people, including many elected officials, that recreation is much more than fun and games,” said Rob Grant, ADECA’s Recreational Programs manager. “It is an economic engine provides jobs and brings money into a community. This is particularly important in rural areas where they are not likely to attract a Hyundai or Kia plant.”

Nisa Miranda, director of the University Center for Economic Development at the University of Alabama, agreed that unique trails and recreation seem to have the potential to draw people from other states and the impact could mean tremendous benefits and economic boosts for some of Alabama’s poorer counties.

“Trails are a wonderful opportunity (for economic development),” Nisa said. “It’s a way to link places and to provide some economic development to places that are really struggling.”

Jim Felder, executive director of the Alabama Scenic River Trail, said the creation of that group seems to be a case in point. Felder said when the organization began, only eight businesses existed along Alabama’s rivers and major creeks to rent canoes and kayaks. Since the organization began sponsoring river ventures and promoting river recreation, there are now 21.

Rob said studies in other states point to the connection between trails, tourism and the overall economic impact.

“We can pull together anecdotal information from other states, but it won’t have the same impact in Alabama that a study conducted in our state would,” Rob said.

Rob said the benefits of the study could result in more support for the development of trails from state and local governments and private businesses and industries.

He said it could also be used to encourage the creation of local businesses ranging from bed-and-breakfast houses and restaurants to recreation outfitters who sell bicycles, hiking equipment or off-road motorized vehicles.

By Jim Plott, CID

All proceeds from the Russian Wild Boar Mountain Bike Duathlon July 16 will go to building the greenway and trails in Brookside.

July 16 2011

Starts at 9 am

Check out the flyer flyer duathlon 2011

The Urban Environmental Studies Program at Birmingham-Southern has launched Trek Birmingham (www.trekbirmingham.com), an online educational and recreational resource about the natural areas and nature education centers in the greater Birmingham area.  Phase I of the project offers authoritative information about the ecology, geology, biodiversity, and watersheds of Ruffner Mountain Nature Center, Sloss Furnaces National Historic Site, Southern Environmental Center, Vulcan Park and Museum, Moss Rock Preserve, and Oak Mountain State Park.  Other local destinations will be added as the site grows over time.  The website was funded through grants and donations to the college from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama, Alabama Power, 3M, and the Stephens Foundation.  BSC’s Dr. Scot Duncan, associate professor of biology, Dr. Ed Brands, assistant professor of geography, and Jeanne Jackson, director of the Hess Center for Leadership and Service, were instrumental in development of the site.  Visit the site at www.trekbirmingham.com, and read more at News@BSC.

It’s been a big week for learning about the Five Mile Creek Partnership. On Tuesday April 5, Our One Mile Tuesday with Jeh Jeh Pruitt featured Tarrant’s Chief Hewitt Park early Tuesday morning. Wendy Jackson, Michael Sznajderman, Tarrant  Mayor Loxcil Tuck and Center Point Mayor Tom Henderson all had some great sound bites about the Partnership. Below are the links to the three videos.

http://www.myfoxal.com/category/195956/video-landing-page?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=5724363

Part 2

http://www.myfoxal.com/category/195956/video-landing-page?autoStart=true&topVideoCatNo=default&clipId=5724708

In the April 2011 Green Issue of Birmingham Magazine, Five Mile Creek Partnership coordinator Francesca Gross is featured talking about the Partnership and its value to the area.

http://www.bhammag.com/bhammag/april_11_my_bham.aspx

Two-Wheeled Economic Development by Rob Davis

Anniston Star  11.28.10 – 02:58 am

The head of the International Mountain Biking Association had a message for me a few weeks ago during a lunch meeting at the offices of The Anniston Star.

From the perspective of IMBA Executive Director Mike Van Abel, the transformation of Calhoun County’s Coldwater Mountain into a big-time mountain biking destination is not about economic development.

Instead, he said, it’s about securing more natural spaces for mountain biking, a sport growing in popularity.

According to the success at similar venues, the message for east Alabama is: Prepare for economic prosperity on two wheels.

Abel and Tom Sauret, executive director of the Southern Off-Road Bicycle Association, visited The Star’s offices with several Calhoun County officials and local proponents of the Coldwater project. They agreed with the view that when completed the mountain’s proposed 60 miles of trails for all levels, along with two “gravity zones” for polishing off-road skills, will make it one of the most attractive venues in the Southeast, if not the entire East Coast.

The plan is to make Coldwater an IMBA ride center, a title the organization designates for only a handful of mountain-biking venues. This is about securing pristine trails for riding, just as Abel and Sauret said. Yet, it’s impossible to neglect the cash that such a destination could bring. A similar project near Albemarie, N.C., is expected to attract 400,000 visitors and offer a $40 million boost to the local economy by the middle of this decade. That sum is more than a third of what Tuscaloosa and Auburn each bring during a season of home football game weekends.

Like we said, that’s a lot of cha-ching from a chain ring and without the colossal traffic jams that big games at UA and AU attract.

Oh, it’s more than that, according to local cycling fans.

Mike Poe, race director for the spring Sunny King Criterium bike events in Anniston, puts it this way: “It will create tourism revenue and will also enhance local quality of life. It will make our community more attractive for industrial recruitment, providing potential employers with an excellent quality of life benefit for employees and families.”

He adds, “Visitors will travel to our community to not only experience the trail system, but will stay multiple days in our hotels, eat in our restaurants, fuel up their automobiles, and shop in local stores.”

According to a survey of Mountain Bike magazine subscribers, the median household income for off-road cyclists is $111,000. Poe points out that the median income of a Golf Digest subscriber is $94,000. And these two-wheel enthusiasts seek new and challenging places to ride, making Coldwater trails like a Disneyworld for mountain bikers.

One striking feature, according to the experts who joined us for lunch, is that Anniston’s Coldwater Mountain trails will be near major highways, stores, restaurants and lodging. A bike rider could spend a day riding the mountain and spend the evening viewing it from a downtown Anniston establishment with a cold refreshment in his or her hand. Many top-notch trails, our mountain biking panelists said, are remote and difficult to reach.

The other unique feature on Coldwater is that it’s largely untouched, making the site a blank canvas for course designers. For this we can thank another lunch guest, Doug Ghee, the former state senator most responsible for enacting the program to protect 4,000 acres on Coldwater Mountain.

Abel and Sauret left with enthusiastic vows of support from Calhoun County Commissioners Eli Henderson and Tim Hodges, Anniston Mayor Gene Robinson, and Calhoun County Chamber of Commerce President Sherri Sumners and Tourism Director Mike Galloway. The project and its estimated $2 million price tag need that kind of support. Local trail boosters say they already have a commitment from the state for $500,000, and are confident they can raise the rest.

The work has already begun. This month volunteers began preparing what will be an initial section that might be ready for riding by the end of the year. After years of delays, it appears this trail is getting smoother.

Bob Davis is editor of The Anniston Star. Contact him at (256) 235-3540 or bdavis@annistonstar.com. You can follow him on Twitter at: twitter.com/EditorBobDavis.

Copyright 2010 Anniston Star. All rights reserved.

Anniston Star

CORRECTION From Rob Grant ADECA Recreational Trails Program:  THE $500,000 IN STATE FUNDING IS NOT CORRECT; THE RTP GRANT IN PLACE IS FOR $150,000.

Thanks to Spain Park Green Team for their hard work at the Coalburg Road Canoe Launch. We partnered with Jefferson County Environmental Services. The Five Mile Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant helped with a front loader, dump truck and machine operators. A great help moving all that trash!

Spain Park Green Team