The Council of State Governments, Midwestern Office (CSG Midwest) is collaborating with eight Great Lakes states to explore the creation of a U.S. Great Lakes Waterfront Trail.
According to Great Lakes Now, the trail aims to connect visitors and residents to the largest freshwater system on Earth, showcasing the history, ecology and culture of the Great Lakes region.
It will also have several connections to Canada’s Great Lakes Waterfront Trail.
“Being part of this Great Lakes Waterfront Trail initiative will help promote our portion of the greenway and will help bring more outdoor enthusiasts to and through our trail,” said Mitch Barloga, active transportation manager with the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission.
The initiative received a non-financial, technical assistance grant from the National Park Service’s Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance (RTCA) program.
RTCA landscape architects and Purdue University geographical information system experts are working with state partners to map the trail along 84 counties and complete a gap analysis.
“CSG Midwest and the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Legislative Caucus are excited to be facilitating this initiative,” said Jessica Lienhardt, Great Lakes Program Director, CSG Midwest.
Indiana’s Marquette Greenway, approximately 60 miles long and 76% complete, is the first state to be mapped as part of the trail. Preliminary maps have also been prepared for Pennsylvania, Illinois, and Minnesota, with Wisconsin, Ohio and New York to follow.
Canada’s Great Lakes Waterfront Trail has been in existence for more than three decades, stretching approximately 2,250 miles from Lake Superior to the St. Lawrence River at the Ontario-Québec border.
It is a greenway route of interconnecting roads and off-road trails, joining 177 communities along the Canadian Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River waterfronts.
The benefits of this trail collaboration include expanding outdoor recreation and ecotourism economies, promoting conservation, encouraging healthy lifestyles, and enhancing quality of life. Trails are known to increase commerce, support and create jobs, increase property values, reduce commuter costs and provide low-cost health benefits.
The U.S. Great Lakes Waterfront Trail initiative promises to connect communities and businesses along the Great Lakes, offering significant economic and recreational benefits. As mapping progresses, the trail is set to become a continentally significant, binational recreational trail.