Sunday, October 16, 2005

John T. Greilick / The Detroit News Jon Heft of Melvindale rides the Rouge Park Mountain Bike Trail. Construction of the trail, which starts in Redford Township, should be completed by spring. The Michigan Mountain Biking Association will do most of the maintenance work.

Detroit

Trail to link Detroit, suburbs

Project will helping acquaint people of all ages with nature.

By Eric Lacy / The Detroit News

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DETROIT -- Construction of the city's first mountain bike trail is under way along a six- to nine-mile stretch of land in Rouge Park. And its opening in the spring is expected to revitalize the park and promote urban recreation.

The project will also be a link between the city and suburbia, since the trail begins in Redford Township. Trees already have been cleared to create the first mile of the trail at west Outer Drive and Tireman.

Detroiter Harvey Santana, 33, was a key player in making this trail possible. He came up with the idea about a year and a half ago because he was concerned about the lack of outdoor activities for children in the area.

"In order to create opportunities, you have to start somewhere," Santana said. "It will be a bridge connecting all different kinds of people together, from the city and suburbs."

Trips for Kids Detroit, a nonprofit group that gives at-risk children the chance to discover nature, is among those that will benefit. Group volunteers helped more than 120 children from Detroit and nearby suburbs last year. But it was a challenge, as many of the parks and recreation areas they visited were 45 minutes to an hour outside city limits.

The city bike trail will show children what's right in their back yard and acquaint them with nature, said Dave Hurst, the organization's president.

"They will learn what it takes to make a trail and see there are opportunities to save the planet right in their own city," he said.

More than $5,000 in grants and corporate donations support the project. National outdoor retail chain REI contributed $4,500, and The Corradino Group, a Southfield-based architectural and engineering firm, added $1,250.

The Michigan Mountain Biking Association will do most of the upkeep. The city of Detroit will also continue to provide routine maintenance.

The goal is to have Rouge Park visitors take ownership of the trail, which supporters hope to extend by six to nine miles. That would require a route starting at West Outer Drive and Tireman, north to Plymouth Road and looping back south around the east bank of the Rouge River, and back to West Outer.

Its hills won't disappoint mountain bikers, Santana said. And walkers and runners will be able to use it, too.