Oro Valley reviews 60% draft of OV Trails Connect master plan; council prioritizes maintenance and connectivity

At its Nov. 19 regular session, the Oro Valley Town Council reviewed the 60% draft of the OV Trails Connect master plan and provided early feedback on maps, guiding principles and priority actions.

Senior Planner Kyle Packer told the council the draft reflects months of outreach with residents and user groups. “It’s the most comprehensive amount of outreach that the town has ever done when it comes to our trails and paved paths,” Packer said, noting a combination of online surveys, in‑person outreach and more than 700 on‑trail comments that informed the plan. He said the package includes a public‑outreach summary of roughly 1,300–1,400 comments compiled to date and that the plan focuses on four asset types: unpaved trails, the Loop, Vistoso Trails Nature Preserve and multi‑use paths (MUPs) alongside roadways.

Packer laid out a draft vision and 10 guiding principles grouped into reinvestment in existing assets, enhancing community connectivity, growing a safe and accessible network, and improving signage and wayfinding. He said maintenance of existing paved paths and trails is the community’s top priority: “Maintaining the paved paths and the trails that we have is the top priority in every category,” he said. The implementation table pairs near‑term “quick wins” such as improved signage and emergency wayfinding with longer‑term projects requiring funding and interagency coordination.

Council members pressed on connections to regional facilities and on data sources. Councilmember Green flagged a dotted alignment on the map heading north and called it “sort of a path to nowhere,” asking whether it would connect beyond Oro Valley; Packer said the tentative line reflects a Pima County proposal to expand the Loop north toward Saddlebrook and potentially to Biosphere 2. Vice Mayor Barrett urged the town to prioritize a multi‑use path along Rancho Vistoso Boulevard to improve safe cycling access; he tied that suggestion to Strava and cycling data that show heavy pedestrian use on the Loop and portions of Rancho Vistoso.

Councilmembers also recommended getting trail maps into Explore Oro Valley and other digital platforms and elevating volunteer recruitment from mid‑term to short‑term actions. Packer said staff will post the maps and materials on ovtrailsconnect.com and continue stakeholder outreach, internal department review and a spring return to the Parks & Recreation Advisory Board and council for potential adoption.

The planner described likely funding sources for projects outside routine maintenance — including federal and state grants (ADOT, RTA Next), general fund contributions, and volunteer/donation programs — and said staff will adjust priorities to reflect town capacity and available grants.

Next steps: staff will collect council feedback, update the draft materials, continue regional coordination, and post maps and stakeholder sign‑up information at ovtrailsconnect.com ahead of a expected spring recommendation and possible adoption vote.