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Trail Town Task Force

The Morgantown Trail Town Task Force held a meeting at the city hall on Tuesday to discuss the logistics of turning several Butler County towns into trail towns. Discussions have been ongoing in Rochester, Woodbury, and Morgantown, and have recently come to a head in the creation of a Trail Town Task Force for Morgantown with the goal of implementing the Trail Town program in the near future.

C. Josh Givens
Currently, Butler County receives around one percent of the money being spent on venture tourism in the nation: “We would like to get two percent.” Josh Givens, current head of the Morgantown Trail Town Task Force, stated. The figure amounted to hundredths of a percent increase, but even that would mean potentially millions of dollars more coming into the community each year. Givens spoke for several minutes on the potential benefits of becoming a trail town, and the steps needed to get us there:  “…the Green River… is such a potential economy and tourism boon to the community: one of the fastest growing outdoor activities is kayaking and canoeing…. We’re looking for something that puts us a little more in touch with where we’re from and connects us with our culture, and that’s one of the goals of this project.”
Givens went on to mention the potential for other activity sectors, including bike paths and equine trails, but the most promising area for growth seemed to be the river. Givens explained that part of the potential success of our river would be the proximity to town: It’s in walking distance of several restaurants. A fact that, he says, local business owners should take note of: “We don’t really want to get into the funding right now, but it’s very important for this effort as well as the business community that they be aware we are doing this… they have expertise in commerce, they know how to serve their customers. So if we’re bringing in more customers into this community, they need to know this. They need to be involved, because that gives them an opportunity to expand their services, to kind of refine their services to fit this new customer base.”


Givens reiterated the need for volunteers again, crediting local members of the community with expertise in their fields as especially valuable for the effort: “If you’re going to bring in a new sector to this community, and let’s be honest, tourism is kind of a new sector for Butler County, I would be interested in seeing the tourism impact on this community….  If you’re bringing in more money [and] people, you expect small business to grow, new small businesses to open. Especially ones that cater to that new segment you’re bringing into this community…. I believe that Morgantown, Butler County, we’re a little bit behind in this kind of thinking… our major need is people to get involved. We had quite a few people here, it’s a much better turn out than I expected. I am encouraged by the folks that came… That’s the kind of enthusiasm we need.”

Story and photos by J. Harris, Beech Tree News

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