Christmas comes early to Unadilla Township as grant funding for Lakelands Trail

By Judy Williams

Unadilla Township Board Members: Linda Topping, Julie Weiland, Linda Walker, Susan Cox, Lori Cowan,

ANN ARBOR, MI, Dec. 14, 2017. Christmas came early to the Unadilla Township Board in the form of a nearly $1.25 million grant to improve Unadilla’s portion of the state park, Lakelands Trail. The grant culminates the final phase of a three-part parks project in the township that began several years ago. Since the initial concept drawings, the project has evolved through many stages including part one, which improved the Unadilla Park and part two, which created a park at the trailhead in Gregory. This third and final portion will improve six miles of the trail through Unadilla Township.

“I’m thrilled to see this project finally coming to fruition,” Unadilla Township Supervisor Linda Walker said. “Unadilla Township sincerely appreciates all who’ve contributed through the funding and planning process. This project will benefit our community and all trail users.”

The Livingston County Road Commission (LCRC) in coordination with Unadilla Township will construct the non-motorized, shared-use pathway along the abandoned Michigan Airline Railway. Design work is set to begin in early 2018 with project completion expected in 2019.

The current trail is one of the few remaining unimproved gaps in the state of Michigan’s Great Lake-to-Lake Trails, connecting Port Huron to South Haven along a 240-mile route.

Consulting firm Stantec assisted LCRC and Unadilla Township in securing 96 percent of the nearly $1.25 million needed for the trail. The project will be funded by a combination of $700,000 from the Michigan Department of Transportation/TAP, $300,000 from Michigan Department of Natural Resources/TF, $200,000 in private donor funds from the Friends of Lakelands Trail, and $50,000 from Unadilla Township.

“We support the communities that we live in and work in,” Mark Pascoe, Principal in Stantec’s Ann Arbor office said. “Securing this funding was the last step in moving this project forward in Unadilla Township. We couldn’t be happier for this community.”

The Gregory/Unadilla section of the Lakelands Trail is also part of the Iron Belle Trail, the longest state-designated trail in the nation, measuring more than 2,000 miles. The Iron Belle Trail connects Belle Isle State Park in Detroit and Ironwood in the Upper Peninsula.

Trailhead in Gregory

Trailhead park in Gregory