Governor's Committee Selects Top Community
Millennium Trails
January 26, 2000

    Montgomery - The Governor's Millennium Trails Committee has announced its third and final category of Millennium Trails.  Earlier today, nearly 40 of Alabama's top pathways were added to a White House initiated list to be known as Community Trails 2000.

    Each of the designated trails will be included in a grand Millennium trails celebration that is scheduled to occur on National Trails Day 2000.  The trails also will receive an official trail marker bearing the White House Millennium Council logo and they will be entered into the new national trails database.  The top five in this category will receive $10,000 each.

    "Alabama is leading the way in support of its trails and to the best of my knowledge we are the only state that has awarded its top Community Trails with grants to help them,"  said Alabama First Lady Lori Allen Siegelman, co-chair of the committee.  "I'm so glad to have the opportunity to promote more of Alabama's trails.  Each of them from the small ones to the large ones, are important to the communities that they serve."

    Nationwide, Community Trails 2000 will include thousands of trails, which serve a wide range of trail users from walkers and bicyclists to people in wheelchairs and canoe enthusiasts.

    After having picked trails for both the Legacy Millennium and Community Millennium Trail categories, the committee's work will continue.

    "Our next project is to share these great trails with everybody through the publication of some books," said committee co-chair and Jacksonville State University Environmental Policy and Information Center Director Pete Conroy.  "The Governor's committee hopes to develop both a handsome coffee table book and free trail guide with descriptions as well as maps.  With any luck, we'll have them available by Christmas next year."

    The Millennium Trails Committee is made up of 30 members from throughout the state.  Funding for awards received by the nominees will come from the Recreational Trails Program of the federal Highway Administration administered by the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA).