To kick off the “Happy Trails” portion of the Washington County Riverboat Foundation’s fall grant presentation, the Washington Economic Development Group was awarded $30,000 toward the regional recreation and trail plan. Washington County Conservation Director Steve Anderson was on hand to help accept the grant, and gave credit to Ed Raber, Director of WEDG, for his work in spearheading the proposal. Anderson said, “What it’s going to allow us to do is county-wide trail planning from every venue. A number of years ago, Washington County created a master trail plan, and we have accomplished a lot of it. It’s time for it to be updated, and that’s going to be the crux of what this grant is going to do. We are going to get all the participants back together, and figure out where we go from here on trail planning.”

Anderson added, having the plan in place is essential to receive a lot of federal funds, so the grant will have an economic impact on Washington County. Moving forward, Anderson said WEDG will hire a consultant to assist in allocating the $50,000 they now have to work with for the trail plan. Anderson feels some of the projects that will take center stage include improvements to horse trails, biking trails, and pedestrian trails, though every city in Washington County will have a say in how the funds get used.