How to build a paddle trail in your community

2. How to build a paddle trail in your community Session II Micro-Level Development February 22, 2006

3. Community Development • Long term process • Sustainability requires • Partnerships • Deliberate Networking • Creative conflict resolution

4. Community Development • No matter how dedicated you are, you can not do this alone • Why not? • Funding • Liability • Support • Sustainability

5. Process • Idea • Public Meeting • Steering Committee • Asset Mapping • SWOT • Plan • Timeline • MOU • Volunteer recruitment • Start the process

6. Idea Ok fine, I am an individual or small group and I want to build a paddle trail. So, how do I get started?

7. Initial Meeting • Request a meeting with your county/town planner, parks and recreation director, and county Extension director. • Why these three?

8. N.C. Cooperative Extension • In all 100 counties, plus Cherokee Reservation • County, State, Federal Government partnership • Educators and Professional Facilitators • Provides technical assistance to farmers, families, and other landowners • Assists with community development

9. County/Town Planner • Responsible for Municipal planning process • Is aware of long term planning goals • Coordinates with tax and land records offices • Understands permitting process

10. Parks & Recreation Director • Managing parks facilities & recreational programming • Networked with local conservation groups and recreational clubs • Access to PARTF grant

11. Parks and Recreation Offices Map

12. At the initial meeting • Develop a list of stakeholders • Determine who should personally contact each stakeholder • Locate a facility to hold the public meeting • Set a date

13. Potential Stakeholders • Municipal & Elected Officials • Wildlife Resources • Tourism contacts • Landowners • Real Estate Developers • Community College Faculty • Religious & Volunteer Organizations

14. Potential Stakeholders • Non-government Organizations • Business Owners • Chamber of Commerce • Community/Economic Development Officers • Emergency Management • Media • And of course, paddlers!

15. Public Meeting • Arrange date for public meeting • Publicize meeting openly and extensively at least 4 weeks prior • Can be held in conjunction with other large well publicized event such as municipal strategic plan or SCORP plan

16. Public Meeting • Provide the following information to show how different factions can benefit from adding a paddle trail to your community.

17. SCORP • State Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan

18. SCORP • If the state is going to effectively address its outdoor recreational needs, the commitment must come from within North Carolina. • A cooperative effort is needed from all interested agencies, groups, and individuals to build support for quality recreational opportunities and natural resource conservation.

19. Paddle Trail Benefits?Landowner’s Perspective • Earn supplemental income • Teach others about what rural life is really like • Create jobs for family members • Diversify products • Preserve land and farmland

20. Paddle Trail Benefits Visitor Perspective • Rural is safe and wholesome • Re-connect with nature • Desire for non-MTV recreation • Natural areas are diminishing as cities and suburbs sprawl (supply decreases, demand increases) • Teach kids/ grandkids about rural life/ growing up outside the city • Unique

21. Paddle Trail BenefitsCommunity Perspective Fabulous mix of • Cultural preservation/ celebration • Farm/ open space preservation • Education • Economic development • Rural/ community pride and vitality

22. Paddle Trail BenefitsDeveloper’s Perspective • Why include Real Estate Agents and Developers? • Palmetto Bluff

23. Potential Tourism Products • EXPERIENCES! MEMORIES! • Water activities – canoeing, kayaking, fishing, hunting • Camping/ lodging • Guided educational & eco-friendly tour packages • Special events/ festivals

24. NC Tourism • Local County Contacts • Heritage Tourism Contacts

25. Public Meeting • Assess interest in group for planning paddle trail • Determine if there are enough people interested in serving on a steering committee

26. Public Meeting • If not, stop the process! • You will have to work on building personal communications with individuals in the community until enough critical mass is reached to make the effort sustainable.

27. Steering CommitteeResponsibilities If there is enough interest to proceed: • Elect steering committee members • Plan for email/internet updates • Schedule at least one physical meeting per month

28. Asset Mapping SWOT Analysis Planning Considerations Networking Strategic Plan Timeline MOA/MOU Volunteers Starting the process Steering CommitteeResponsibilities

29. Steering CommitteeResponsibilities • TAKE NOTES! chronicling the process is imperative • Send updates to all people involved • Write press releases for media/public meetings

30. Asset Mapping • List all positive features of your community • Determine how a possible trail could complement those features • Network with the people in charge of those features • Involve them in the process

31. SWOT Analysis • Strengths • Weaknesses • Be creative • Opportunities • Threats • Be proactive

32. NOTE! • Asset Mapping and SWOT Analysis procedures are very complex! • These take many meetings over a series of months/years to develop. • Experienced, trained facilitators are required.

33. Planning Considerations • Balance with surrounding area • Community Involvement • Educational Programming • Funding for development • Health regulations • Interpretation

34. Liability/ safety Marketing Staff/ skills Tax Visitor/ site-readiness Zoning Planning Considerations

35. Network • Network in your community/region • Support local business efforts • Cross promote with other trails • Keep the tourism/economic/municipal officers and extension personnel informed about your business • Support your community

36. Strategy • Develop a comprehensive, dynamic plan • Set goals that are • Measurable • Specific • Attainable • Determine responsibilities

37. Timeline • Make it Realistic • Make it Fluid • Have Specific Milestones

38. Memorandum of Understanding • Determination of which agencies will be responsible for what action. • It is not legally binding, but rather serves as clarification. • The signing should be a ceremony or event.

39. Volunteers • It takes a great deal of effort to coordinate volunteers and keep momentum • Recruit them • Manage them • Nurture them • Remember they are not paid!

40. Start the Process • Small steps • Attainable goals • Maintain momentum • Publicize/Praise efforts • Celebrate events

41. What is the very, very last phase in the paddle trail development process??

42. Actually building the trail!

43. The efforts can be worthwhile: Michigan Heritage Water Trails

44. Contact Information Eric N Caldwell County Extension Director Transylvania County eric_caldwell@ncsu.edu Phone: (828) 884-3109 Fax: (828) 884-3142 Mail Address: 203 E Morgan St Brevard, NC   28712

45. References • http://ils.unc.edu/parkproject/resource/scorp/scorp_int.pdf • http://pprc.umsl.edu/base_pages/cnd/toolkit/05c.htm • http://www.commerce.state.nc.us/tourism/ • http://www.wmich.edu/glcms/watertrails/ • http://www.palmetto-bluff.com/default.asp • http://www.nps.gov/phso/rtcatoolbox/