“The First Mile” Clean Ohio Project has begun construction

Darke County Parks is pleased to announce that “The First Mile” Clean Ohio Project has begun construction in the Gettysburg, Ohio area and will have almost two miles completed by the end of August. Park District Director /Secretary Roger M. Van Frank stated, “We are very excited to see the first phase of this multi year project get started. Once the community sees that actual construction has begun then the fun really begins as we watch this project energy grow over the next few years. We already have multi year commitments for donations from our local banking infrastructure to help support the in kind match needed to make this all happen.” Eventually Darke County Parks will hope to have over 18 miles of trail that will link Union City on the Ohio Indiana Border south to Greenville, Ohio where the Greenville Creek Trail (a previous Clean Ohio Project) will be linked up and then continue east to Bradford where Miami County Trail enthusiasts are working on connecting to Bradford from the Covington area. “This is a great example of what a regional group can accomplish with this “Can Do” attitude. The Friends of the Darke County Parks Phoenix Trails Committee are to be commended for their hard work and input to this project.” Van Frank Continued. A grand opening date and time for the first phase will be announced later in August. The trail pictures shown are during the construction phase and one of the pictures shows local resident Neil Garber already riding the trail and asking how far is this going to go? Upon completion it will be a 10 foot wide asphalt trail. For more information please contact Darke County Parks at 937-548-0165 or director@darkecountyparks.org.