All,
On August 12th, a group of legislators and I visited with Governor Beebe regarding the proposed trail grant fund. The meeting's focus was educational, and an economic impact report was provided along with 153 support letters from trail advocates, mayors, judges, physicians, bankers, attorneys, teachers, ministers, and business professionals. The governor was cautiously optimistic, but, noncommittal, in his responses He requested a week or two to review the materials. Afterwards, Governor Beebe will again meet with Rep. Moore, the Bill's author and champion. So, now, we wait.
Please accept my sincerest thanks for your efforts to get those letters written. They were critical and the stack was substantial. Our goal was 100 letters. We exceeded that goal by over 50%. The time it has taken to work through numerous issues, to garner support, and to follow-through has been enormous. Your support letters made every minute of it worthwhile. As recently as last Friday, I received word that the executive committee of the Municipal League voted unanimously to support the initiative.
Because so much of the information in the report can help illustrates the need, importance, and economic impacts of trails, I have chosen to provide here in the hopes it will help others working with state and local governments.
Please share my gratitude with other networks and individuals you know who have gone out of their way to help.
Best Regards,
Terry Eastin
Co-Chair, 2008 National Trails Symposium