MANSFIELD, Ohio — The Richland B&O Trail turns 20 years old this October.
Operated by the Richland County Park District, this 18.4-mile public rail-trail that connects Mansfield, Lexington, Bellville and Butler has provided a haven for countless runners, walkers and cyclists.
Steve McKee helped spearhead the creation of the trail while serving as director of the park district.
He said the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating a nationwide network of trails from former rail lines and connecting corridors, notified him that CSX Railroad was going to abandon its rail line in Richland County and that there was new federal legislation enabling the creation of recreational trails on such abandoned rail lines.
One of the major challenges was obtaining funding for the project. With the help of the Richland Regional Planning Commission, the park district was able to secure a rare 100 percent federal grant that would pay for the acquisition, engineering and construction of the trail.
“Another major challenge was convincing the public that this was a good thing,” McKee said. “Now it seems like such an integral part of our community that it might be hard to imagine that there were people opposed to it.”
He said park district officials spent many hours informing the public on how the trail would be funded, maintained, utilized, etc.
Each community that would include part of the trail (Bellville, Butler, Lexington and Mansfield) had to sign consent legislation in order for the project to move forward. “That meant convincing the councils in each of those four communities to agree to it,” McKee said.
The project was delayed twice because of legal matters.
With regard to the first legal issue, McKee explained, “What happened was the Interstate Commerce Commission gave us permission to pursue this trail using the Rails-to-Trails Act. And CSX agreed in concept that we could use their right-of-way for this trail since they were abandoning it, but we couldn’t agree on how much to pay them because we had to pay them to use it.”
Though the grant the park district obtained was going to pay for the project, he said, “We still had to agree on a price, and our prices were very different, so we filed eminent domain, which meant that a jury got to decide what the cost of this right-of-way was.”
Fortunately, that issue was resolved; however, it wasn’t long before another obstacle presented itself.
McKee said Clear Fork Valley residents living adjacent to the proposed trail filed a federal lawsuit to stop it from being built.
That lawsuit delayed the project for about three years, McKee estimated.
It wasn’t until 1995 that construction began. The trail opened in October of that year under the name “Richland B&O Trail.” McKee said, “Because it was known as the B&O [Baltimore and Ohio] Railroad for over 100 years, that’s why we chose to call it the Richland B&O Trail.”
“Since it was opened, we’ve had very few problems and it’s been well-accepted by the community,” he commented.
The park district maintains the trail primarily through the help of volunteers. “We have a lot of very dedicated volunteers,” McKee said.
The B&O Trail is one of 91 total rail-trails in the state of Ohio, according to the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy website.
Melissa Culler, Richland Public Health educator and a member of Richland Moves!, pointed out the benefits of having a recreational trail in the county.
“There’s evidence that suggests that having access to recreational trails can help reduce the rate of obesity and other chronic diseases,” she said.
The scenic trail provides a free opportunity for people to get some exercise, she said, adding, “What better place to go and be physically active than out on the trail?”
Nelson Shogren, chairman of Richland Moves!, agrees.
“The idea of skaters, walkers, dog-walkers, cyclists using a park-like facility to get outdoor exercise is great,” he said.
In celebration of the trail’s 20th anniversary, Richland Moves! is encouraging people to hop on the trail throughout the month of October.
Shogren said the group is currently working on a project meant to commemorate the 20th anniversary, noting, “Nothing’s set in stone yet.”
“Another major challenge was convincing the public that this was a good thing,” Steve McKee said. “Now it seems like such an integral part of our community that it might be hard to imagine that there were people opposed to it.”
