Sunday, May 17, 2009
Parks department relies on survey
Mark Taylor
Mark Taylor's Outdoors column and notebook appears regularly in The Roanoke Times.
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It's no secret Roanoke's greenways are busy and getting busier.
Don't believe it?
Trying running or riding a bike along the Roanoke River Greenway on any nice weekend afternoon. Just be ready to ring your bike bell or yell "On your left!"
A lot.
Busy is good. It means people are out enjoying the outdoors, improving their health and becoming invested in the area's recreational opportunities.
But does it mean more?
The Roanoke Department of Parks and Recreation has just launched a survey it hopes will provide more information about just who is using the greenways, and what the economic impact of that use is.
If you get out on a greenway any time soon, there's a chance someone will hand you a paper survey.
An electronic version is also available.
The survey is short and to the point.
After a couple of questions to establish how time the user spends on the paved trails, and the primary reasons for visiting, it gets down to dollars and cents.
Take Question No. 6: "In the last year, how much money have you spent on greenway related purchases?"
This includes bikes, athletic clothing, sunglasses, walking or running shoes, baby joggers, etc.
The survey also asks if respondents had to relocate, would they consider moving near a greenway, and asks if the user would expect a near-greenway location to increase the price of the property.
As simple as this survey is, it could have important lasting impact.
Any time public officials seek money for expansion of facilities or programs, they love to be able to point to potential impact.
Improved health, happiness and quality of life are hard to get a handle on, but dollar figures always carry a lot of weight.
To find the survey, which just went active Friday afternoon, visit www.roanokeva.gov/greenwaysurvey.
TU gets big grant from AEP Foundation
The popular Trout in the Classroom program will be among the key Trout Unlimited initiatives getting a boost from a $100,000 grant the American Electric Power Foundation just passed along to the coldwater conservation organization.
The grant, the largest coldwater conservation grant of its kind in the affected region, will cover initiatives in the areas of Virginia, West Virginia and Tennessee served by the AEP's Appalachian Power.
In addition to Trout in the Classroom, other core project areas will be conservation projects to create volunteer opportunities for AEP/Appalachian Power employees and habitat restoration projects.
Through the Virginia Council of Trout Unlimited, $40,000 will be distributed to fund 36 Trout in the Classroom projects over the next four years. Four of the projects will be funded per year in Virginia and West Virginia, with a single project funded in Tennessee annually.
Another $40,000 will go toward eight habitat restoration projects, four each in Virginia and West Virginia.
The specific projects have not yet been announced.
The remaining $20,000 will pay to extend a power company access road about a half-mile to reach Little Tumbling Creek in Smyth County.
The road will allow crews access for a liming project to negate effects of acidification of the creek.
Emissions from coal-fired power plants are among the factors that can contribute to stream acidification.
A committee of TU leaders from Virginia and West Virginia, as well staffers from AEP, will manage distribution of the grant money.
Big cycling weekend on tap
Bicyclists looking for a tough challenge on Memorial Day weekend need only look to the New River Valley.
The annual Cycling Double Header is back with the Wilderness Road Ride on Saturday and the outrageous Mountains of Misery on May 24.
The Wilderness Road Ride offers four options, from an easy 14-mile to the long 58-mile option. The rides start and end at the Dedmon Center in Radford.
There are no easy options for the Mountains of Misery, which starts in Newport and ends at Mountain Lake. The least miserable is the 103-mile ride that includes 10,000 feet of climbing. Riders seeking an even more ridiculous challenge can tackle the 125-mile double metric century, which has more than 13,000 feet of elevation gain.
But, hey, you get a T-shirt if you finish. (And only if you finish.)
For more information, visit cyclingdoubleheader.com or call Runabout Sports at 552-9339.
