Updates on Activity: East Whiteland, Schuylkill, Charlestown and Chester County

This past week, SCP Rails to Trails attended the Schuylkill Township open space meeting as well as the East Whiteland Planning Commission meeting to answer questions on the Candy Line proposal.  In both cases, interest and excitement were high, and hopefully signals participation of volunteers from East Whiteland into the SCP group.  We may need to rename the group SPEC Rails to Trails soon.

Discussion with the East Whiteland Board is still needed, scheduling to be determined.

Charlestown township is voting this coming Tuesday on applying for a county grant to fund a preliminary study of a rails to trails project.  This will fulfill Rails to Trails national's suggestion of getting Official township buy-in along with an independent corridor value assessment, and is a huge step in making a trail that connects the Schuylkill River Trail and the Chester Valley Trail.

The August SCP Rails to Trails meeting was canceled due to scheduling problems, and September looks pretty busy as well.  Depending on the progress that is made in the next couple of months, an early October meeting may be the best option.  I will keep everyone on the email list informed as we get closer.  If you'd like to attend, please email SCPRailsToTrails@gmail.com.

Charlestown Township Parks and Trails Plan

The SCP Rails to Trails group has focused on assisting Charlestown Township with their long-term strategic plan for trails and open spaces this past year, and the final version of that document has been submitted to the Charlestown Board of Supervisors.  This document includes and inventory of current trails, along with suggestions of where the township should look to for expansion of the trail system - both on-road bike routes and off-road multi-use trail corridors.   The Candy Line trail is mentioned as a long-term option.

The current trail map can be seen in detail here:
http://www.charlestown.org/ct-misc/ct-Trails/ct_Trails.asp