Blazing A Trail - Stakeholders Plot Course For Mill Line's Next Phase
Friday, June 9th, 2023
The Mill Line trail will eventually link the crown jewels of Dalton's parks system with the Crown Mill neighborhood and downtown Dalton. The trail link between Haig Mill Lake Park and Burr Park downtown is one of the most anticipated projects on Dalton's drawing board. Work has already started on the construction of the first phase, a paved trail along Mill Creek from the Eagle Walk trailhead on Chattanooga Avenue to the Haig Mill Lake dam. On Friday, a group of stakeholders came together for a lunch meeting at City Hall to discuss the second phase of the project which will link phase one with downtown.
The project isn't as simple as just paving a straight line to downtown. With existing roadways, railways, utilities, and businesses standing along the way as well as the challenges of gaining rights of way for land the planning of the project is complicated. City staff is working with engineering consultants Landis Evans & Partners and American Consulting to develop the best route and eventually the best design for the trail. Friday's meeting with stakeholders was one of the first steps - essentially, setting goals for the project.
Caption: Bruce Landis points out features of the first phase of the project on a map as the stakeholder group listens Friday afternoon at City Hall
The stakeholder group included representatives from the Parks and Recreation Department, Whitfield County Planning and Zoning, tourism, property owners and developers, elected officials, and members of the local cycling community. The meeting was led through a brainstorming session by Bruce Landis, the president of Landis Evans consulting. Landis showed the group examples of other trail projects that his company has been involved in planning and showcased some of the benefits that have followed those projects including community revitalization and economic growth. Landis polled the group to determine what sorts of goals and objectives his company should be working towards as they chart different routes for the trail. The stakeholders agreed that they hope for a trail that can be used both by cyclists, runners, and walkers. The stakeholders also hoped for a trail system that can be used for recreation but also improve pedestrian access to Crown Mill and downtown Dalton. The group envisioned a draw for tourism as well, attracting visitors who come to use the Pinhoti Trail and other nearby outdoor attractions.
The next steps for the consulting partners are to begin work to identify possible corridors and routes for the trail and begin to collect and compile data to evaluate the candidates. They will present their recommendations later this year which will lead to the design phase. As for the first phase of the project, the paved trail along Mill Creek to Haig Mill Lake is expected to be complete by December 1st.
