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Metro COG presents final Heartland Trail study for Clay County; recommends phased build to Buffalo River State Park
Summary
Metro COG and consultant SRF presented a draft Clay County Heartland Trail study recommending a phased trail alignment that prioritizes access to Buffalo River State Park, outlines six construction phases over a likely multi‑year timeline, and flags coordination needs with Minnesota DNR, landowners and Becker County.
Metro COG and SRF Consulting presented the draft Clay County segment study of the Heartland Trail to the Clay County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday, recommending a phased approach that would prioritize a connection from Moorhead to Buffalo River State Park.
Stuart Crosby, landscape architect and project manager with SRF, said the broader Heartland Trail is a 49‑mile paved shared‑use route that has seen intermittent construction since 1976, and that Metro COG’s Clay County study began in January 2024. The study evaluated existing conditions, multiple alignment options in Clay County and cost and implementation phasing; Metro COG funded 80 percent of the study with federal funds and local partners provided a 20 percent match, Crosby said.
“Public engagement was a big part,” Crosby said, noting two public open houses, landowner meetings, pop‑up events and an online comment map that drew “over 2,000” website visitors and “over 350 contributions.” The study divided the county corridor into four segments and six phases; public feedback showed discomfort with routing the trail along Highway 10 and preference for alternatives such as Twelfth Avenue South through parts of the county.
The draft recommends phasing construction to reach Buffalo River State Park from the west (phases 1–4) and building east‑to‑west segments later (phases 5–6). The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources’ (DNR) master‑plan corridor, a 3‑to‑4‑mile wide area, constrains alignment choices if the trail is to be designated a state trail; any alignment outside the DNR corridor would require the DNR to revise its master plan.
The study outlined trade‑offs between pursuing state trail designation or regional trail status. State designation would require close DNR coordination and could make DNR resources available for construction and maintenance, while a regional designation could open legacy and Greater Minnesota funding opportunities but would typically require a 10–20 percent local match for legacy grants and place maintenance responsibility on local agencies.
Crosby and Metro COG staff stressed several planning challenges that will require further work: landowner negotiations (the corridor relies mainly on public right‑of‑way; eminent domain is not available for this state trail study), potential environmental and cultural reviews near Buffalo River State Park, two structurally challenging bridge crossings between Holly and Becker County, and coordination with Becker County for an eventual county‑to‑county connection.
Commissioners discussed next steps including forming or reconstituting a Heartland Trail task force, deciding who would lead design and funding efforts (Metro COG, county or a local entity), and pursuing additional planning, design, environmental review and construction funding. Commissioners and staff noted construction will likely occur over a decade or more, with opportunities to “piggyback” trail work onto roadway projects.
The draft study will be presented to jurisdictional partners and Metro COG’s policy board, with final adoption anticipated in August, county staff said.
