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Powell Economic Partnership pushes forward rail-with-trail planning; requests county-appointed committee
Summary
The Powell Economic Partnership asked the Park County commissioners for permission to plan an 11‑mile rail‑with‑trail corridor linking Garland, Powell and Cody and for a county‑appointed advisory committee to guide outreach and design work.
The Powell Economic Partnership asked the Park County Board of County Commissioners for permission to plan an 11-mile rail-with-trail corridor that would connect Garland, Powell and Cody and eventually link into the Great American Rail Trail.
The request, presented by PEP Executive Director Rebecca Burns and AmeriCorps VISTA Colin Keifer, asked only for planning permission and for the commissioners to appoint a countywide advisory committee; PEP said no county funding was requested. “The two asks are number one, can we have permission to plan with no fiscal request attached to that? … The other request is, we would like to have a county appointed committee,” Burns told the commission.
Why it matters: supporters said a trail could draw tourists, spur small businesses near trailheads and provide front-country recreation close to municipalities. Burns said PEP has raised preliminary private funds and collected more than 1,000 petition signatures supporting the idea, mostly from local residents.
The presentation included practitioners from Rails-to-Trails Conservancy and local landowners. Rails-to-Trails representative Jackie Lavelle noted that rails-with-trails are established nationally and that Burlington Northern Santa Fe and irrigation districts routinely work with trail projects. Landowner Greg Anderson, who owns property along the proposed corridor, said he would consider participation if neighboring landowners also agreed and if economic opportunities for landowners were clear.
Commissioners said they were not prepared to declare the project a county program yet. Commissioner Bill Theo said he would prefer to see firm support from affected landowners before the county assumes a formal role; Commissioner Ken Mangold asked PEP to return with a proposed committee makeup and a draft resolution outlining responsibilities and the plan’s scope.
Next steps: Commissioners asked PEP to draft the committee proposal and a resolution identifying committee size and membership criteria and to return at a future meeting. The commission extended no fiscal commitment and said any county maintenance or easement needs would be examined later.
What remains unsettled: landowner consent, easement negotiations and engineering questions around river and irrigation crossings. PEP and Rails-to-Trails representatives said survey work and conversations with BNSF and the irrigation district will be needed to determine feasibility.
