|
DLCD awards $50,000 for Lewis and Clark trail
construction project
Contact:
Chip Jenkins, supervisor, 1-503-861-2471 ext 401 (Astoria)
Fort Clatsop National Memorial, email: chip_jenkins@nps.gov
Doug Babb, 503/802-4104 (Portland)
Conkling Fiskum & McCormick, Inc., email: dougb@cfmpdx.com
SALEM, OR - The Department of Land Conservation and Development has awarded
a grant of $50,000 to assist in the completion of the Fort-to-Sea Trail, a recreational
hiking trail between Fort Clatsop National Memorial and the Pacific Ocean.
The idea for a Fort-to-Sea Trail originated in 1955, when the Fort Clatsop replica
was constructed by volunteers to observe the sesquicentennial of the Lewis
and Clark expedition’s stay near the mouth of the Columbia River. The
trail is designed to preserve the legacy of the expedition.
The Fort-to-Sea Trail will extend about 5 ½ miles from Fort Clatsop to
Sunset Beach, and will be located entirely on public lands. The Oregon Department
of Transportation is funding a pedestrian underpass under U.S. Highway 101, which
will be constructed in 2005.
The $50,000 grant from DLCD will help fund construction of a pedestrian bridge
over Neacoxie Lake, which will be completed next year.
“This grant will support a small but important piece of a great project,” said
Lane Shetterly, director of DLCD. “The Fort-to-Sea Trail may be viewed
as the last step of Lewis and Clark’s westward journey. The trail is
an outstanding example of a collaborative project that highlights one of the
defining elements of a community. A lot of people and organizations deserve
a lot of credit for their persistence in seeing this project through. We were
pleased to be able to make this contribution.”
The Fort-to-Sea bridge project is in addition to $244,456 in grants awarded
earlier this year for seven other projects in coastal communities. The grant
funds – combined with funding from local governments and state agencies – are
used to create or improve recreational access to important coastal sites. They
also provide the public with opportunities to visit, learn about, and use coastal
natural resources.
The funding comes to the state from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
under the federal Coastal Zone Management Act, which supports the Oregon Coastal
Management Program.
More information on the Trail can be found at:
DLCD CONTACT:
Jeff Weber, Special Projects Coordinator, 503-731-4065 x26. jeff.weber@state.or.us
LCDC to hold regular meeting Sept. 29-Oct. 1 in Astoria
SALEM – The Oregon Land Conservation and Development Commission will hold its next regular meeting Sept. 29-Oct. 1 at Fort Clatsop (92343 Fort Clatsop Road) in Astoria. The meeting is open to the public.
The LCDC directs the work of the Department of Land Conservation and Development,
which is based in Salem but has regional offices in Waldport, Bend, Central
Point, Eugene and Portland.
The seven-member Commission will begin the three-day meeting Wednesday with
a tour of the Astoria area, including sites of interest to land use. The meeting
concludes on Friday.
More information about the LCDC meeting can be found on the Department’s
Web site.
The next regular LCDC meeting will be Nov. 3-5, 2004 in Portland. |
