Gov. Blunt Marks Start of Katy Trail Connector to Kansas City

Missouri Governor's Office Press Release             PLEASANT HILL – Expanding the Katy Trail has been a priority for Gov. Matt Blunt and today he held a ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the official beginning of the Rock Island Trail-Katy Connector project from Windsor to Pleasant Hill which connects the Katy Trail to the Kansas City area.                "Missouri's Katy Trail State Park helps to highlight the scenic beauty of our state, provides recreational opportunities for Missourians and generates tourism dollars for our economy," Gov. Blunt said. "Expanding the Katy Trail to the Kansas City area has been a priority of my administration and our efforts in the Taum Sauk settlement have made this connection possible. With the new Windsor to Pleasant Hill connection we will be closer than ever before to connecting the trail across the state.  I look forward to the day when cyclists can travel from St. Louis to Kansas City on this beautiful trail."             "Connecting the Katy Trail to the Kansas City area has been a long-time goal for the Missouri Department of Natural Resources and for the cycling community, and it is gratifying to see that this project is moving forward," said Doyle Childers, department director.  "Having a trail connecting the two major metropolitan centers will enhance recognition for Missouri and be an economic boost."                          Gov. Blunt and the Department of Natural Resources secured through the Ameren Taum Sauk settlement a perpetual license to build a trail that will connect the Katy Trail from Windsor to Pleasant Hill, which will result in linking the Katy Trail from St. Louis to Kansas City.  The state will receive $18 million for construction of the Katy Trail to Kansas City.             The 225-mile long Katy Trail, which is administered by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources, has the distinction of being the longest developed rail-to-trail conversion project in the nation. It also has been recognized nationally for the outstanding recreational opportunity it provides and the significant economic boost it has given to the many communities along the route. It is estimated that approximately 350,000 people annually use the trail, which runs from St. Charles to Clinton.                  In addition to being in the Rail-Trail Hall of Fame, Katy Trail State Park is considered a designated Millennium Legacy Trail, part of the American Discovery Trail and is the longest non-motorized segment of the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail.                                                This year the Katy Trail was inducted into the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy's Rail-Trail Hall of Fame. The Rails-to-Trails Conservancy is a national nonprofit organization that works with communities to preserve unused rail corridors by transforming them into trails. The Conservancy developed the Rail-Trail Hall of Fame in 2007 to honor exemplary rail-trails each year. Rail-trails are chosen on merits such as national prominence, scenic beauty, user volume, historical significance, total length and geographic diversity. Katy Trail State Park was chosen as the second rail-trail to be included into this new Hall of Fame. There are currently 1,457 open rail-trails and nearly 1,000 more in development.    -- http://MissouriNetizen.com http://www.bransonedge.com http://www.bransonmissouri.missourinetizen.com