STANWOOD — City officials are looking for volunteers to help plan walking trails and bicycle lanes.
Work is starting on Stanwood’s first non-motorized transportation plan. The document, once complete, is meant to outline goals for making it easier to get around the city on foot or by bicycle.
The shape of the plan, including precisely what topics it covers, how far into the future it looks, and how detailed the suggestions need to be will depend on comments from the public and decisions by an advisory committee, senior planner Carly Ruacho said. The city plans to form a committee of up to nine volunteers. Anyone interested can sign up for more information at an open house Thursday.
The open house starts at 4 p.m. in Fire Station 99, 8117 267th St. NW. It’s a chance to offer suggestions and ask questions. Ideas also can be emailed to Ruacho at carly.ruacho@ci.stanwood.wa.us.
“We need the plan in order to start applying for grants,” City Administrator Deborah Knight said. “We’re going to identify areas where the city already owns property and could look at trails without buying new right-of-way.”
For example, Stanwood owns 50 acres behind the wastewater treatment plant downtown, along the water, where a trail could be built to link the newly acquired Hamilton Mill and Ovenell parks. The city purchased the park properties earlier this year with $1.5 million in Snohomish County Conservation Futures money, $300,000 of city dollars and a donation of $236,000 worth of land from Hamilton Family Properties. A master plan for Ovenell Park is under way.
There’s also a partial loop trail around Heritage Park that could be finished, Knight said. The goal is to explore options for linking East Stanwood to other downtown parks and connecting existing paths and sidewalks. Bike lanes are another piece of the discussion — which roads need them most and where they would be realistic.
The boundaries of the plan are the city limits but it could tie into regional transportation goals, Ruacho said.
“For bike lanes and trails you need to kind of lift up your head and look around at what opportunities there are to connect,” she said.
The planning process is expected to take about six months. The city is looking for ideas from anyone who lives in Stanwood and has an interest or experience in getting around by foot or bicycle.
“I don’t know exactly what it will look like yet, but there will definitely be more opportunities for public involvement,” Ruacho said. “If people can look around and see what they would like in the future, this is a good opportunity to help plan what Stanwood will look like.”
Neighboring jurisdictions already have plans or are close to finishing one, Ruacho said. Island County has a nonmotorized trails plan, Skagit County is working on one and Snohomish County addresses bicycles and pedestrians in a chapter of the comprehensive plan. There also is a statewide bicycle and pedestrian plan.
Kari Bray: 425-339-3439; kbray@heraldnet.com.
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