PARKS & TRAILS NEW YORK AWARDS CAPACITY BUILDING GRANT TO THE HARLEM VALLEY RAIL TRAIL ASSOCIATION.

The Harlem Valley Rail Trail Association is one of eight not-for-profit park and trail groups selected to receive a Capacity Building Grant from the statewide advocacy organization, Parks & Trails New York. The awards are designed to help groups increase organizational visibility, generate community support, grow membership, and attract additional volunteers.

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COLUMBIA LAND CONSERVANCY RECEIVES GRANT FOR DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION PLANS FOR A FIVE-MILE RAIL TRAIL EXTENSION LINKING COPAKE AND HILLSDALE

The Columbia Land Conservancy (CLC), in conjunction with the Harlem Valley Rail Trail Association (HVRTA), has received a planning and design grant from New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation for $121,965. The grant will fund preliminary designs and final construction plans for a FIVE-mile addition to the Harlem Valley Rail Trail from the current terminus in Copake Falls into the hamlet of Hillsdale.

"This grant is a huge step forward in expanding this popular community trail, giving more people access to outdoor recreation.  It's a testament to the ability of these two communities to bring people together around their community assets," says Tom Crowell, CLC's Director of Outreach and Resource Development.

This latest initiative on the rail trail began with a group of Copake and Hillsdale residents and members of the Hillsdale Hamlet Committee reaching out to CLC, the Harlem Valley Rail Trail Association, and New York State Parks.  This new partnership will help accomplish a major goal of the Hillsdale Hamlet Committee, bringing the Harlem Valley Rail Trail into the center of Hillsdale and beyond. It also will help accomplish a major goal of the Copake Economic Advisory Board to help connect all of the hamlets in Copake via rail trail and to make Copake bike and hike friendly.

"HVRTA has been working since 1986 to promote the completion of a trail between Wassaic and Chatham, this is a major step forward in the advancement of the trail,” says Dick Hermans one of the founding members of HVRTA. 

The project will link Taconic State Park in Copake Falls, the Roeliff Jansen State Park, The Roeliff Jansen Community Library, the Hamlet of Hillsdale, the Hillsdale Community Wetland, and the Rheinstrom Hill Audubon Sanctuary on a trail corridor already owned by New York State.

The community and local organizations demonstrated strong support for the project with the Town of Copake, Town of Hillsdale, Assemblyman Marc Molinaro, Columbia County Board of Supervisors Economic Development and Tourism Committee, Friends of Taconic State Park, Roe Jan Library, HVRTA, and the Chamber of Commerce all submitting letters of support for the grant proposal.

 Art Baer, Hillsdale Town Supervisor, says that "extending the trail would bring enormous economic, recreational and development opportunities to Hillsdale.  It is an important first step in the implementation of our recently completed Hamlet Design and Development Plan." 
 
“The Harlem Valley Rail Trail is an extraordinary treasure for residents of and visitors to Copake,” stated The Copake Town Board and the Copake Economic Advisory Board unanimously.  “It provides exercise, recreation and economic stimulus - all with exquisite views.”

The grant is a matching grant, requiring local funds equivalent to 20% of the grant award. CLC will be leading the project oversight with support from HVRTA.  HVRTA has been a major advocate for the trail and is committed to promoting the trail through to its natural end point in Chatham.

HVRTA's Administrative Director Lisa DeLeeuw says that "the continued success and expansion of the Harlem Valley Rail Trail into Columbia County is absolutely dependent on the partnerships that have been formed over the years. The trail would not have gained its current momentum in the county without the help and cooperation of the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, & Historic Preservation in securing remaining sections of rail bed; the continued assistance, support and guidance of the Columbia Land Conservancy; and the determination of the Harlem Valley Rail Trail Association to see this project through to completion."

Named after the Harlem Line of the New York Central Rail Road, which ran from New York City all the way to the Village of Chatham, the trail has a long history. After the trains stopped running in 1976 the tracks were removed, leaving a 46-mile corridor ideally suited for a rails-to-trails project.  In 1989, New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation (NYS Parks) purchased 20.38 miles of the right-of-way in southern Columbia County and northern Dutchess County.

In 2006, using federal and local matching funds secured by the Columbia Land Conservancy, New York State began to purchase approximately eight miles of the rail bed from willing sellers.  At the same time, the Harlem Valley Rail Trail Association embarked on a successful campaign to purchase an additional 14 miles of rail bed from a single owner, which they subsequently turned over to New York State to be included in the future trail. Currently, the paved section of the trail ends about four miles south of Hillsdale in Copake Falls.

The Harlem Valley Rail Trail Association is a not for profit organization which exists to perform the following tasks: coordinate a volunteer trail maintenance program on completed sections; promote completion of the trail all the way to Chatham; provide Trail users with information about the natural world they are passing through; develop and purchase trail amenities such as signs and benches; and promote safe use of the trail.

In its 24-year history, CLC has helped hundreds of local families protect 20,930 acres of land.  CLC manages nine public conservation areas, providing miles of trails for free, year-round outdoor recreation, and it hosts free education programs for people of all ages throughout the year, developing customized educational programs in partnership with area schools, day-care centers, after-school programs and summer enrichment programs to bring children into the outdoors.  CLC also works to support and strengthen agriculture and thoughtful land use planning throughout the county. 

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