Conklin Bay Trail project funding tops $1 million

By RAY BALOGHStaff Writer Megan McClellan, executive director for Syracuse-Wawasee Trail Committee, reported Thursday evening, May 24, more than $1 million has been received or pledged for the Conklin Bay Trail project.An anonymous $22,000 donation in April, matched by the Dekko Foundation, helped nudge the total over the seven-digit threshold.The committee approved a motion to solicit bids for the Conklin Bay boardwalk. McClellan informed the committee of three potential vendors and passed around a couple samples of proposed materials.The two sections of boardwalk will span 1,760 linear feet.McClellan also reported the mileage markers around Syracuse Lake have been installed. The markers are placed every one-quarter mile, with the marker at Syracuse Community Center designated as 0.0 miles and counting up clockwise around the lake.The 3-foot wooden posts were installed by Carter Bowman for his Eagle Scout project. Nineteen markers cover the 4 3/4-mile loop around the lake.It was also announced Tommy Danger will share his adventures at a cystic fibrosis fundraiser from 2 to 4 p.m. Saturday, June 2, at the Rotary Scout Lodge, 10433 N. 500E, Syracuse.Danger, a Wawasee High School graduate, has bicycled from Los Angeles to Boston and has run from Seattle to Daytona Beach, Fla. He is currently on a quest to climb the highest peak on each of the world’s continents.In other business:

• Committee member Angie Racolta received the Volunteer of the Month award for helping distribute helmets at the recent bike rodeo and for other work she has performed for the committee. The bicycle helmets were donated by Wawasee Kiwanis.
• Racolta distributed a draft of the tri-fold brochure that will be used for promotion this summer. The brochure will contain an updated map of the parks department trails.
• McClellan reported more than 100 riders from Indiana, Ohio, Illinois and Wisconsin have registered for the ninth annual Tour des Lakes Saturday, July 14. McClellan announced sponsors have until Friday, June 22, to maketheir commitments.
• The Couch to 5K program is “halfway through.” The class runs from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. every Wednesday at Syracuse Community Center.
• The committee is sponsoring Walks With Yoga at 9 a.m. every Thursday, starting at Syracuse Public Library, 115 E. Main St. Each hour-long session begins with a half-hour walk on the trails, followed by advanced chair yoga at the library. Participants are advised to dress comfortably and bring a towel.

The committee will next meet at 6 p.m. Monday, June 18, at the trails office, 801 N. Huntington St., Syracuse.