Kosciusko County Park Board approves draft trails master plan to forward to planning commission

Kosciusko County Park Board members voted to approve a draft Trails Master Plan and forward the document to the county planning commission for incorporation into the county comprehensive plan. The vote followed several minutes of discussion about outstanding data gaps, design guidelines, and next steps for public review and implementation.

Board members and the plan’s consulting team said the draft consolidates community input and will be treated as an evolving document as additional data are incorporated. Scott, a member of the design team, said the draft and accompanying materials are intended to move through the planning commission process so the trails plan can become part of the county’s comprehensive plan. "It's a living, breathing document," Scott said, adding that some wording and data points still need insertion.

The board’s discussion identified three near-term procedural items: (1) some pages in the draft contain placeholders for data that are still being provided by partner agencies (board members referred to these pages as the "red tabs"); (2) the design guidelines are a separate deliverable from the public-facing master plan report and will be provided to the board as a reference tool to aid implementation; and (3) incorporation into the comprehensive plan via the planning commission will require additional review and typically two planning commission meetings before the county adopts a final master-plan amendment.

Speakers also urged the board to "socialize" the draft with municipal and township leaders before final adoption so local partners understand the plan’s intent and how potential projects could align with city- and town-led efforts. Members discussed several local projects that could connect with the county plan, including extensions near Winona Lake, Pearson, and Syracuse, and noted potential grant opportunities referenced during the meeting, including the Lilly Endowment grant and a small-community grant program mentioned during public remarks (referred to in the meeting as "Horry funds").

Board members asked the consulting team to revise language in several sections to avoid implying that county trails would be built only adjacent to roadways. The team agreed to amend wording that suggested greenways would be limited to roadway corridors and to clarify that alignments could include fence lines, rights-of-way, or property corridors where feasible.

After the discussion the Park Board moved to approve the draft and forward it to the planning commission; the motion carried on a voice vote. The board also tabled approval of meeting minutes from a prior period to the next meeting. The Park Board set a schedule to continue meeting monthly until the master plan process advances farther with the planning commission and local partners.

The board asked staff to notify members when the plan is scheduled at the planning commission so interested members can attend public hearings. The consulting team said the design standards document will be delivered separately to the board and to municipal partners to aid consistent design across projects.