SYRACUSE — Syracuse-Wawasee Trail Committee met Monday, May 15. Megan McClellan, executive director, told the board several recent events for the trails were successful.

“The trail clean-up went well,” reported McClellan. The clean-up was April 21.

The Couch to 5K program started April 18. Six women have signed up for the classes. The classes last until June 13.
The third annual Trail and Trails Community Dog walk event was Saturday, April 22; about 30 people showed up with their dogs.
The bike rodeo Saturday, May 6, “drew a lot of people,” she said. “We gave out all the helmets in 1 and 1/2 hours,” she said.

There were no major construction updates to report. However, Pulver will start on the SR 13 crossing soon and the work is expected to take four weeks; work on Northshore Drive will start in June.

In maintenance issues, it was recommended to not remove trees along a trail on Cornelius Road. It hurts the mower and looks messy, said McClellan of the overgrown trees. “We do not want to cut the trees on Cornelius. This is because of erosion.”

Tour des Lakes is Saturday, July 8. So far, there are 93 registered riders. Last year, there were 300 riders total. There is triple the number of registrations this year as at the same time last year. Several activities are planned for after the bike ride, too.

Dr. Tom Edington gave the treasurer’s and funds report. Donations for April totaled $100,426 and expenses totaled $16,857.94. The Dekko Foundation awarded the trail committee a grant of $100,000 directly. Of the expenses, $12,450 is for the Conklin Bay boardwalk design.

Donations included the Dekko grant, $110 from Tail and Trails, and $155 from Couch to 5K registrations. There were also two, $500 donations online. There was $1,300 in unspecified donations in April.

It was discussed how non-budgeted funds should be allocated. One suggestion was use it for next year or use it for the Conklin Bay project. The recommendations were noted but no final decision was made.

Spring trail counts are this week. The Mudtastic Classic will be Saturday, June 24, at WACF, and the committee will have a team.

Starting this week, Wednesday walks will continue with chair yoga being added at the library, too. The walks are from noon to 1 p.m.

Volunteer of the Month is Chad Jonsson.

The next meeting date is at 6 p.m. June 19, at the trails office, 801 N. Huntington St.