Plan offers new routes, signage for biking system

Last week, Amy Hillard, a graduate student from Eastern Washington University, presented the fruits of her four-month recreation project to develop a master bicycle trails plan that could be implemented in the city, county and through the timber in the Kootenai hills nearby.

Several local officials were in the room, including representatives from the City of Libby, Lincoln County, U.S. Forest Service, Libby Area Chamber of Commerce, Montana Wilderness Association, Friends of Scotchman Peaks and others.

The presentation sought to inform them on three questions about future trails projects: how did the trail system and maintenance deliverance get to where it is today; what is happening now and where can it go from here?

“Basically the conversation started with the need to diversify the economy,” Hillard said. “Libby is mostly just a resource extraction, and that’s fine but it’s nice to have a different form of economy, something to diversify it. You look at Libby and it’s kind of isolated but that’s kind of what’s a positive about it, you’re in the natural environment.”

The presentation offered several new options for trail use, signage upgrades or new terrain, essentially putting the logistics before any local agencies willing to pick up the information, choose an option and execute the remainder of the footwork to complete the project.

The presentation highlighted the area’s natural amenities and the chance to diversify the local economy with more recreational activities, in turn promoting a workable place to live and play. Libby’s recreation and tourism sector is currently at a tipping point, Hillard said, and now there’s a need to centralize that effort and get the community at large on board with employing a more recreation-friendly atmosphere.

“People already had ideas in the works, but really we needed some background information, we needed to get organized, so that was the tipping point,” she said.

Hillard’s work began in June, a graduate-study project funded in part by a Big Sky Trust Fund grant. Her work here is meant to establish options for future recreational amenities that could be installed and quickly build on the options tourists find in the area, between features like the Kootenai Falls and weekend-population booms like the Ignite the Nites car show.

In order to execute the options brought during Hillard’s research, she said the agencies involved would have to establish a few positions, including a recreational planner. The personnel would compile and identify existing trail networks, create a series of maps, connect trail works to town when possible and find sources for funding options.

During the past four months, Hillard’s research has found new trail opportunities around the Flower Creek Complex, the Bobtail Ridge and Sheldon Mountain areas and the Port Authority near Libby Creek. Another possible route she found could connect Showshoe Road with the Leigh Lake trailhead, which she also found to be the most popular trailhead in the local area.

At the Port Authority, recent developments have already added recreational opportunities, like the fishing pond or the dozens of acres next to it that are still open to the next addition. Hillard has been working with the Port staff to layout a plan for a bike path on Stimson Haul Road, across Libby Creek from the Port’s property. The Port Authority is already working on a grant to secure funding that would replace the bridge over Libby Creek with a more user-friendly appearance, and designating new space for driving and parking in the recreational areas of the property.

The bike-path project in the Port Authority or anywhere else in the area would hopefully help encourage future restoration projects, Hillard said.

She also added that since taking over Plum Creek land, Weyerhauser has decided to allow access to its property for local residents, but trail development is not an option.

Hillard also added a separate, urban bike plan to the bag of options. She said having a separate, closer-to-town proximity plan could be beneficial to bike use around the community itself. The urban routes could be new connectors for U.S. Highway 2 and MT Highway 37, via different backroads encircling residential areas and roaming near the downtown area.

The next step in Hillard’s project requires local agencies, like the city, county or even Forest Service to adopt and formalize her plan, which could include all of the options, or only a few. The new agency would have to hire on a trails-and-recreation position, likely form an advisory board and trails committee to plan for future actions and funding, and update planning policies with local governments. But, with Hillard’s work already published, the foundation is already set for the projects to pickup momentum.

Libby District Ranger Nate Gassmann said while the U.S. Forest Service might not be getting into the driver’s seat on the biking trails project, the federal agency does support the project moving forward.

“We are supporting it,” Gassmann said. He said the group that attended Tuesday’s meeting is the right one to help carry the plan into its next phase.

“It just represents the direction more than anything that they’re not going to sit on their heels and wait for someone else to do it,” Gassmann said. “It takes energy of all kinds and you’re going to find a strong desire to do something. Thats going to be the win that comes out of this; if people aren’t agreeing that’s fine, but they’re going to do it together.”

City Administrator Jim Hammons said project coordinators would have to present the master plan to the city in order for local government to adopt it into future plans. But, Hammons said he believes the plan thus far is sound and efficient in helping agencies collaborate for future work on a better trail system.

“All those things tie together, that’s why a master plan is important. That way if a group starts putting it together we’ll all know what’s going on,” Hammons said. “I think its a good idea to by working on something like this, rather than everyone doing their own thing. It’s good to have a plan everyone can work off of or add to.”

If conducted on the same pace as Hilland during the last four months, she said completing the plan could take around six years, but added that the plan could still be updated and grow as time continues.

“This is a working document, you can always take new ideas and bring them into the plan,” she said. “But it’s the conversation started; it’s the foundation.”

Reporter Seaborn Larson may be reached at 758-4441 or by email at slarson@dailyinterlake.com.