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Friends of the Casey Jones State Trail at their 2022 Annual Meeting at Plum Crrek Park in Walnut Grove -
American Legion Commander Brad Pagel accepting $1000 donation from Hadley Lions Club towards the Vietnam Traveling Wall coming to Slayton August 15-20 2023 -
American Legion Post 64 Commander Brad Pagel accepting $1000 donation from Corey Kruse, Plant Engineering Manager, Monogram Foods Chandler MN, towards the Vietnam Traveling Wall display coming to Slayton MN Aug 15-20 2023.
The Friends of the Casey Jones State Trail had a busy year in 2022 laying groundwork to accelerate progress on the Casey Jones State Trail. With 2022 coming to an end, we want to thank our supporters and partners for another great year and announce some exciting news: Get Ready for the Casey Jones Currie Loop 2.0!
Through successful partnership with DNR, $800,000 in funding has been secured from the 2022 Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources (LCCMR) Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund. This funding comes on top of an $840,000 award from LCCMR in 2021. Together, this funding will help with engineering and reconstruction of two large segments of the Currie Loop along County Highway 38 and east of the Lake Shetek State Park office. In addition, a $75,000 request for engineering, design and permitting of the final segments of the loop is being sought from 2023 LCCMR funding.
The loop has been a favored spot in the are for bicyclists, rollerbladers, and walkers for many years, but this funding comes at a critical time for the Currie Loop, which ranked in fair to poor condition in the Parks and Trails Council’s 2018-2019 State of the Trails report.
“The Friends of the Casey Jones State Trail has been dedicated to finding a solution to not only preserving but enhancing the Currie Loop and advancing the Casey Jones State Trail,” said Deb Nelson, Chairperson of the Friends. “We’re beyond grateful for the support of the LCCMR. Their funding will help our trail progress. A trail connecting our communities is an asset for the entire state, as well as an economic driver and quality of life enhancer for southwest Minnesota.”
With Lake Shetek State Park listed as the 10th most visited tourist attraction in southern Minnesota, having an attractive state trail connected to the park will lead to a stronger destination for tourism and for the local and regional community.
What’s planned for 2023? The Friends will continue to seek support and funding to finish the rehabilitation of the Currie Loop, and we’re seeking funding for advancing the trail east of Woodstock. We’re also supporting efforts for a feasibility study of a trail connecting Pipestone to Luverne along Highway 75.
All of this work could not be possible without the support of our members, our communities, partners, and legislators. We’re thankful for continued financial support from Pipestone and Murray Counties, who have supported the state trail advancement and the Friends for many years. Their partnership has been instrumental in building momentum and progress for the Casey Jones State Trail. We are also thankful for Senator Bill Weber and Representative Joe Schomacker who have once again partnered with us to advocate for the Casey Jones State Trail at the Minnesota Legislature. We will be working closely with Senator Weber and Representative Schomacker again this legislative session on bills to expand funding for the Casey Jones State Trail.
