Disparate groups push greenspace master plan

ALBANY — Dougherty County Attorney Spencer Lee took off his lawyer hat Monday morning to address the County Commission “as a citizen” who is working to promote the creation of a continuous trail system from Radium Springs in south Dougherty County, north to Pirate’s Cove in Lee County and west along a Rails-to-Trails corridor to Sasser in Terrell County.

Lee joined Albany-Dougherty Planning Director Paul Forgey in discussing the advantages of utilizing $80,000 in special-purpose local-option sales tax money to create a master plan for the greenspace trails project that both say would bring economic development to the community.

Lee told the board that the county owns 9 acres of land at Radium Springs and the 200 acres that previously were the Radium Golf Course. Plans call for the development of a series of walking trails on that property. He noted that, except for a brief space, the city of Albany has developed a walking trail “through the heart of the city” from the Albany Civic Center to Philema Road. A group has created a mountain bike trail from the Civic Center north to Wells Avenue.

The county attorney noted that an Albany Tomorrow master plan had the Riverwalk trail cross Philema Road to Chehaw Park, which has 9 1/2 miles of trails. Plans to build a pedestrian bridge across Philema stalled, however, breaking the connection with the city’s Riverwalk. Original plans, Lee said, called for the trail to continue to Pirate’s Cove in southeast Lee County.

A new wrinkle that will soon become reality is a 13.62-mile Rails-to-Trails corridor that will offer bicycle and pedestrian traffic a route from downtown Albany to Sasser.

“There are a lot of well-intentioned projects along this series of trails, but they’re owned by disparate groups,” Lee said. “There’s no connection. By using the $80,000 in SPLOST funding, as sought by the Greenspace Committee, we could put together a master plan that would connect all these groups’ holdings into a continuous series of trails. If that happens, Albany will be somebody.”

Forgey, who helped get local approval for a state initiative that will designate the old Dixie Highway from Albany to Thomasville a scenic highway, said having riding/pedestrian trails along the Flint River will enhance the area for ecotourism.

“It just makes sense to get everyone involved in this talking to each other,” the planning director said. “There’s a lot of economic development potential with this plan, one that will help Albany recapture its rightful place as the hub of Southwest Georgia.

“With the greenspace trails along the river and the Dixie Highway scenic trail, there is the potential for biking enthusiasts to plan outings and events from here to Thomasville.”

District 2 County Commissioner John Hayes brought his concern over the County Commission’s “disconnect” with downtown development into the discussion.

“Why, Spencer, is it taking 20 years for Albany to make things happen?” Hayes asked. “How can a community that can bring 20,000 people into town (for the weekend’s Snickers Marathon/Mardi Gras celebration) not make improvements? What are we missing?

“We at this table are certainly disengaged from any talk about downtown development; somehow we’ve been left out of the process. We need to be at that table.”

Commission Chairman Chris Cohilas said that a “previous commission” had voted to remove the county from the Albany-Dougherty Inner City Authority, which has been tasked with overseeing development in the city’s central business district. But Downtown Manager Sharlene Cannon, who serves as president of ADICA, welcomed “conversation” among the city and county leaders.

“I think one of the things that has been missing in this process of improving downtown is dialog among the stakeholders,” Cannon said. “The county should be involved, and I welcome any input from this board and any other that’s involved in improving our downtown. This proposal (to connect the trails series) is one of the most exciting things I’ve seen since I’ve been here.”

The county will vote on the SPLOST funding for the greenspace master plan at its business meeting next Monday.