Clinton-Ionia-Shiawassee Trail

All 3 Counties Give the Go-Ahead to the Clinton-Ionia-Shiawassee Trail!!!

October 13, 2005 marked Shiawassee County’s final adoption of a resolution to proceed with the Clinton-Ionia-Shiawassee Trail Project. With this third county decision, trail advocates felt they finally reached the end of a long journey started in 1999 to convert the abandoned Central Michigan Railroad corridor into a multi-use trail for recreation and nonmotorized transportation. In reality, it is only the beginning since there are many hurdles to go before the trail can become reality. Property deeds analysis, price negotiation, fundraising, trail design, decisions on trail operation, are all items that will need to be taken into consideration. “But for now, commented Nancy Krupiarz, Executive Director, Michigan Trails and Greenways Alliance, “the Friends of the Clinton-Ionia-Shiawassee Trail can celebrate the fact that this will now be a project officially pursued by the counties.”

Next Steps

The next step for the trail project will be for the 3 counties to come together to finalize how a $1.125 million grant from the Meijer Foundation will be spent on the trail and to begin to work on a formal trail commission agreement for future operation and maintenance of the trail.

The Tri-County Trail Study Committee

For the past year, it was the Tri-County Trail Study Committee, comprised of 3 representatives each from Clinton, Ionia, and Shiawassee counties who scrutinized the issues related to trail acquisition, development, maintenance, and operation. Since their appointment in October, 2004, they toured the corridor, listened to experts from across the state answer their concerns, and ended their deliberations with a vote this past May, recommending that each of the counties pursue the trail project. Michigan Trails and Greenways Alliance thanks each and every committee member who diligently attended meetings and carefully considered all the issues before making their recommendations.

1 On August 10th, 2008, c. brehmer said:

when will this project get started? It’s been 3yrs since the resolution to proceed with this trail. going on 10yrs overall. it would be nice to see some more progress. other projects are moving ahead much faster than this one, it’s like this trail has been forgotten.
Our community needs this.

2 On October 11th, 2008, Neal Marrison said:

I agree. Look at what St. Johns Historical is doing with their train cars and memorabilia in preparation of this trail. Also with the economy the way it is more families are looking for recreational opportunities closer to home. I’m afraid if things don’t move faster this project will be lost due some unforeseen gov’t. intervention.

3 On February 9th, 2009, Carrie Stewart said:

Apparantly, regulations, operation, and maintenance is still the issue between the 3 counties. Based on Roger Thelen’s outline, a major foundation had offered to pay up to 75% of initial development, and maintenance costs are accomplished through volunteer efforts & fund raising. Has development even started yet? Wouldn’t this get the ball rolling for others to join the volunteering to help part?

4 On February 9th, 2009, Rebecca Stimson said:

What are the Next Steps for the project? Is there a citizens group that volunteers can get involved with?

5 On February 10th, 2009, nancy said:

There is a master planning process kicking off this week. This will help the communities decide exactly what they want the trail to look like and what types of use it will receive. There will be plenty of opportunity for public input along the way. Hopefully, once the master plan is done, the three counties will coordinate together on its development and we can get this trail on the ground!

6 On February 10th, 2009, nancy said:

Yes, there is a Friends of the Fred Meijer Clinton-Ionia-Shiawassee Trail and they have a website: http://www.cistrail.org. The Friends group board of directors meets monthly and they welcome your participation! They are currently organizing the first volunteer clean-up effort on the trail – stay tuned for more details.

7 On July 23rd, 2009, Ralph said:

It appears to me, that after 3-4 years or maybe 10 years of doing nothing, it is time to scrap the parties in charge with some replacements who will get off their dead …. and get this project on track. No pund intended. LET GET THIS GOING. SOON.

8 On July 26th, 2009, Lucas said:

I think it is a good thing that they going to turn it into a trail. What I do not like s the modifying of the bridges. The three that I am thinking of would be the old trestle over the ditch near pewamo, and the bridges over Stony Creek and the Maple River near muir. The three bridges are over 150 years old. They are a part of the history of the Grand Trunk Western Railroad. Just put up warning signs “Cross at your own risk”

9 On July 27th, 2009, Keith Browne said:

I checked out the trail that runs from Owosso to Ionia today. After not finding any place like a trailhead to park my car, I ended up parking about a mile down the road at the Michigan Works office. Traveling west from Owosso, the trail was decent. Your normal two track with more ATV tracks then foot prints or bike tracks. Definitely no maintenance has ever been done. It was like that all the way to Ovid, about 10 miles. There was where it got interesting. There was a trailer that was parked right across the trail. They were doing some construction at the MMPA factory. (if you don’t think your milk comes from a factory, think again) After going around the trailer and climbing through the woods, I picked up the two track again. About 2 miles west if Ovid, the trail had stuff growing on it. By the time I got about 5 miles west of Ovid, the trail was impassable. I was afraid I was going to screw up my bike in that mess. I just bailed and took the highway back to Ovid.
Someone needs to get out there with a brush hog.

10 On August 6th, 2009, nancy said:

The project is moving forward, despite the lack of seeing anything visible happen on the corridor. Right now, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources is putting together a draft master plan for the trailway – i.e., what the surface will be, what amenities will be included and where, such as parking lots, overlooks, kiosks, etc. In September the representatives from each county together with the DNR will review the master plan, make any changes necessary, and then the counties can begin to put together applications for funding for development of the trail. Meanwhile, the trail is really not open to the public. There are bridges without decking and many spots where the corridor is blocked with vegetation. It is not meant for public passage at this time. Thank you for your patience.

11 On August 6th, 2009, nancy said:

Please contact the Friends of the Clinton-Ionia-Shiawassee Trail by e-mailing Roger Thelen at thelenr@pilot.msu.edu. He will be glad to let you know of any future clean-ups or other activities to assist on this trail. Thank you for your interest!

12 On August 6th, 2009, nancy said:

The reason you had such difficulty is that the trail is not open to the public yet, even though it is owned by the state. The Michigan DNR is currently putting together a master plan for development of the trail. The landscape architects are out in the field determining what the surface should be, where parking lots should be, kiosks, overlooks for the river, etc, and other details. The Steering Committee, comprised of representatives from the 3 counties and the DNR along with the National Park Service Rivers Trails and Conservation Assistance, will review the draft in September, 2009 and plans for seeking development funding will progress from there. I know – we at MTGA are getting anxious too, that this trail we have been advocating for and helping with since 1998 is finally open to the public! Feel free to ask anytime you want a status report on the progress.

13 On August 14th, 2009, Bob Flynn said:

The only way I will ever get to ride this trail is if my funeral procession drives down it on the way to the cemetery .

14 On September 7th, 2009, Roger said:

Just checked this trail out Sept 5 09 by driving across at mutiple Rd crossings. It obviously has not had any upkeep. It appears to be impassable from Smith rd to the east, overgrown. Plan on riding this to the west to see what condition and how far it is passible. (appearently that would be ovid from an earlier post)I ride MNTB at Island lake, Holdridge, & Bald mountain currently. We need a trail system in shiawassee county badly. I am willing to help out in any way with this trail just ask. I will now continue to check this page for updates. Wow, this has been a long time in the making…..

15 On September 8th, 2009, nancy said:

The eastern endpoint of the trail is at Smith Road. The section east of there was not for sale. The friends group had one cleanup on the trail to keep it open. But since it is not really open to the public, they have not scheduled any more for now. Thanks for your interest and yes, stay tuned to this page for updates.

16 On September 8th, 2009, nancy said:

The master plan is being drafted by the DNR pursuant to their field work to assess conditions along the trail. The Steering Committee will meet soon to review the draft. The first opportunity for funding will come with the Natural REsources Trust Fund. Those applications will be due April 1 of next year. Decisions will be made December 2010. The money would then be approved by the Legislature in 2011 and work could possibly begin in Summer of 2011. That is strictly an estimate on my part, from looking at other trail timelines. They could do some very preliminary safety actions that could open up the trail as is, but I’m not sure if DNR will do that.

17 On September 8th, 2009, nancy said:

The next step is for the Steering Committee together with the DNR to review the master plan draft and finalize it. Then the process of grantwriting for development. I would recommend joining the Friends of the Clinton-Ionia-Shiawassee Trail if you want to volunteer. They can always use the help. Contact Kathy Simon, Secretary of the friends group at 989-593-3642.

18 On October 9th, 2009, Lance V. said:

I love to ride bike and I am very excited to hear of this. I think the railroad corridor that runs through Clinton Ionia and Shiawassee Counties would make a beautiful trail. However I am also very angry at the same time.

When I first heard of the possibility of a bike trail through these counties I was very excited. Soon after this first announcement I heard very little about the trail and how things were going. I kept checking their web site but it still looks the same it did a year ago. When I check it for an update on the progress of this trail I am always disappointed. Why the heck have a web site when its just going to sit their not being updated for months or years. I think most people would like to know, every once in a while, if everything fell through or if things are still on tract. A few months ago I gave up on their web sites and was about to tell all my friends and family to forget the idea of this bike trail. They get you all excited and then they don’t say sh**. I understand planning a trail takes time but update us once in a darn while.

19 On October 9th, 2009, Lance V. said:

Thank You Nancy for the updates. I really appreciate it. It helps to know whats going on.

Michigan Trails & Greenways Alliance

MTGA is a non-profit organization that shall foster and facilitate the creation of an interconnected statewide system of trails and greenways for recreation, health, transportation, economic development and environmental/cultural preservation purposes.