Opinion

Here is a chance to share with others who are interested in the Luce Line Trail your ideas or comments about trail issues.

How do you feel about paving of the trail?

What can be done to bridge the gap in Winsted, or solve other problem areas?

Or other topics . . .

Just send us your comments. We'll post all comments in reasonable taste here.

Paving

After learning more about the paving issue I feel that I should change my opinion. I have learned a lot more about the issue and have found that there will be a compromise so we can all use the trail.

If an 8 foot wide section of the trail is paved, it should leave 7 feet of space for horseback riding. That way everyone can still utilize this great resource. The money received would not just be for paving, but also for improvements.  If we can open up the trail to more users while preserving it for those using it currently, why not pave it?

Anne LeClaire

Favorite part: Ox Yoke Lake to Watertown

The Luce Line Trail is very nice from Plymouth to Winsted. My favorite part was biking from Ox Yoke Lake to almost Watertown and then parking in Watertown and biking to Winsted.

My husband and I the next day parked in Hutchinson and found it to be a nice paved path through town until we hit the heavy gravel which made it impossible to bike any further. We were disappointed in this, although it is natural from Winsted on, it would be best if not so much gravel were dumped onto the trail!

Wendy

Preserve the trail

I have been riding my bike on the Luce Line ever since I was 5 years old.

The trail is truly a unique place to visit, and paving it would take away from its character. The Luce Line is a place to relax, it's a place to get-away, and it's a place of nature.

The limestone surface is what makes the trail different. Its surface is what brings me to nature and away from the "busyness" of the roads and sidewalks. The more we pave the earth, the more of its beauty we lose.

When you think of the Luce Line, think of its beauty, and the nature that surrounds it. Don't think of it as a place to modernize, but as a place to preserve.

Not preserving as in making permanent, but preserving as in leaving it the way that it is.

Jason Fortin, Plymouth Resident

Black top on the trail

Why do we need to add blacktop to the Luce Line? How many more people will it draw to the trail? How many people will it turn away? All these questions need an answer before paving begins.

The Luce Line is beautiful the way it is. Changing it, in my humble opinion, is to take part of its character away.

There are numbers of trails across the state that are paved, so that there is easier access to the trail. How many are not paved?

Christopher Wilson, Mayer

Paving of the Luce Line

The DNR is going to finalize their plans for the Luce Line in early May 1998. These plans currently call for paving the Luce Line from the State Highway 25 bridge in Watertown to Oak Lake. The Watertown City Council endorses this plan. The Watertown Township board opposes it.

We have heard that if the Watertown City Council would change their position regarding paving of the Luce Line, then the DNR would not pave it. Area residents recently approached and challenged the council on this position. As a result, Mayor Lynn Hauger stated that the council will reexamine its position on this subject. The topic of trail surfaces will be on the agenda at the council meeting on Tuesday, April 14.

Public meetings were held by the DNR in early December. The attendees at the Watertown meeting overwhelmingly opposed pavement. We estimate that over 100 attendees were against, while only 5 were for it. Yet, Mayor Hauger believes that the council's position represents the desires of the people of Watertown. They believe that the people want the pavement, and that the pavement would be good for future development and growth of the city.

The mayor and the city council also stated that if paving of the Luce Line deterred any current uses of the trail, then they would not be in favor of paving. We believe that pavement would be detrimental for the following reasons:

Snowmobiles would be banned from using the paved portion of the trail. If the snowmobiles were to use the second unpaved treadway, then horses would not be able to use the trail for 5-6 months of the year.

Limestone is a much friendlier surface to walk or run on, especially for pets. Roasting hot asphalt in the summer sun would hardly be acceptable for walking dogs. Dog owners would need to find other places to walk their pets.

To keep an asphalt surface maintained well enough to meet the needs of in-line skaters, someone will need to supply periodic maintenance. Will the DNR increase its budget for taking care of the Luce Line in Watertown? Will the City of Watertown sweep the trail twice weekly to remove sticks and debris?

Do you want the trail to resemble the overused asphalt paths of Minneapolis or the Hennepin Park system where oftentimes, the users are elbow-to-elbow and where you can seldom, if ever, find a bit of solitude. From what we can gather from other trail users, including bikers, is that the limestone surface is just fine the way it is.

A lot of us don't feel that limestone is a negative thing. Limestone is a unique and rather marvelous material to have as a trail surface. It has been a very cost-effective surface which for the most part, has withstood the test of time, something asphalt would never do without tremendous maintenance costs.

It is time for you to let the mayor and the city council know how you feel. Please write or phone the mayor and the city council expressing your concerns.

George and Jean Buehl, Watertown Township

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