RTC TrailBlog : art

Memphis Connects Parks with Rail-Trail and Complete Streets

Stephen Miller (RTC) — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 17:36:00 GMT

In many ways, the recently opened Shelby Farms Greenline is a linear extension of the city's largest park to downtown Memphis, Tenn. But the rail-trail stops just short of Overton Park, which contains, among other attractions, the Memphis Zoo and the Memphis Brooks Museum of Art. What's standing in the way? Broad Avenue, an east-west connection that has seen better days.

To complete the missing link, Broad Avenue was transformed, at least temporarily, into a complete street featuring bike lanes, art-inspired crosswalks painted by local schoolchildren, and temporary businesses that set up shop for the weekend. It's part of an effort, called "A New Face for an Old Broad," to show the community what Broad Avenue could be while making the connection between the trailhead and Overton Park.

"This is a critical link ... The Greenline is the catalyst to turn around attitudes toward the city of Memphis, Tennessee," says event sponsor Charles McVean. Kyle Wagenschutz, bike and pedestrian coordinator for the city of Memphis, agrees. "Much like the Greenline gave Memphians a tangible example of off-road spaces that are safe places for biking and walking," he says, "the redesign of Broad Avenue will be a physical representation of how city streets can be designed as safe places for bicycle riders and pedestrians." Plans are already taking shape in an effort to make permanent improvements to Broad Avenue.

It's an inspiring story of extending a pathway beyond the trail corridor to foster business development, physical activity and community spirit at once. Be sure to watch the video report embedded above from WMC-TV.

Cleveland Walk+Roll Event Features Morgana Run Trail

Eric Oberg (RTC) — Fri, 06 Aug 2010 13:16:00 GMT

A beautiful, sunny July 25 made a wonderful backdrop for the Walk+Roll event in Cleveland's Slavic Village neighborhood. The Sunday event brought hundreds of people, young and old, to enjoy numerous events throughout the community. Walk+Roll sponsored the event in conjunction with Slavic Village Development. The celebration included the closing of 1.8 miles of neighborhood streets to motor traffic, creating a festive atmosphere as cyclists and walkers took over the streets and the connecting Morgana Run Trail.

Beginning at Cleveland Metroparks Washington Reservation, which hosted live music, soccer and golf stations, the 2.6-mile loop ran through Slavic Village. Along the route participants enjoyed cuisine from local restaurants, tours of the extensive community gardens, multiple live music sites, a carnival area for families including free root beer floats, skateboarding demonstrations and baseball games played by America's longest-running little league organization.

Another highlight of the day was the official dedication of Rotoflora, the newly installed public art piece at the 49th Street trailhead. The concentration of people and smiles back at Washington Reservation late in the afternoon confirmed the overwhelming success of the event.

Photo by Eric Oberg/Rails-to-Trails Conservancy.

Belgian Rail-Trail Sports Innovative Art

Stephen Miller (RTC) — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 20:05:00 GMT

A rail-trail in Woluwe-Saint-Lambert, a municipality in the suburbs of Brussels, Belgium, is home to a sculpture that puts rail materials to artistic use. The sculpture by artists Daniel Steenhaut and Francoise Geeraerd is entitled Calligraphie Ferroviaire (in English, Calligraphy Railway) and was installed in 2002. It takes two tracks heading toward each other, gradually bending until they shape a man and woman meeting in the middle.

The sculpture was brought to our attention by RTC supporter Pete Hargrove, who writes, "I used to live in Maryland, about a half-mile from the Capital Crescent Trail...Since December 2009, I have lived in Brussels and discovered within a month a rail-trail about a kilometer from my apartment here. I realized it is a rail-trail when I noticed that streets adjacent to the trail are named Rue de Gare, which even I know means Station Road. And, it has a sculpture, which nearly knocked my socks off the first time I saw it."

Photo by Peter Hargrove

Sensory Trail Creates Unique Experience Along Ohio Rail-Trail

Eric Oberg (RTC) — Tue, 22 Jun 2010 14:31:00 GMT

On April 22, 2010, Earth Day brought the official opening of some of the more interesting trail amenities we've seen along the Fairfield Heritage Trail in Lancaster, Ohio. Adjacent to the trail is the campus of Forest Rose School, a Fairfield County Board of Developmental Disabilities (FCBDD) facility that provides special needs children with educational and life skills opportunities from birth to age 22. Where the trail meets the school, the Lancaster Sensory Trail has taken shape.

The idea behind the trail was to build an outdoor experience, easily accessible for the students, that would stimulate and engage their senses. The first phase of the project, now open, includes items such as herb pots, fragrant flowers and bushes, bird feeders and houses, native trees, grasses and art pieces. A local Lions Club also installed a rough bark tactile display that includes Braille interpretation. Also installed are six large, permanently mounted outdoor musical instruments that have been custom designed with their own tethered mallets. The entire trail is wheelchair accessible.

The project has been a multi-agency collaboration since its beginnings in 2008. Spearheaded by FCBDD, other agencies integral in its success include Fairfield County Soil & Water Conservation District, U.S. Natural Resource Conservation Service, city of Lancaster, Southeast Ohio Center for Independent Living and the Heart of Ohio Resource Conservation and Development Council. Major additional funds were raised through in-kind local volunteer efforts as well as two successful 5K running events. The innovative project was so impressive that it was awarded the 2009 Project of the Year award by the North Central Association of Resource Conservation and Development Councils.

While phase one has been an enormous success, the group is not resting on its laurels and has an ambitious plan for expanding the Sensory Trail. Future additions are to include a bridge over the nearby creek, wetland restoration as well as a wheelchair-accessible treehouse! As one very early supporter of the Fairfield Heritage Trail noted, it's amazing to see the types of innovative community-based projects that seem to sprout off of a seemingly simple rail-trail.

Photo: Musical equipment along the Lancaster Sensory Trail. Photo by Bob Williams, Fairfield Heritage Trail Association.

One State, Two Very Different Wall Treatments Along Rail-Trails

Stephen Miller (RTC) — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 20:10:00 GMT

This study in contrasts caught my eye this afternoon. The cities of Methuen and Newburyport, both along the Merrimack River in Massachusetts, are only 20 miles from each other. In Methuen, a rail-trail is under development, while in Newburyport the Clipper City Rail Trail is receiving its finishing touches. Both trails have large walls created by bridge abutments. Both walls act as ideal canvases but have received vastly different types of art recently. In Methuen, colorful graffiti has sprouted, while in Newburyport artist Bob Kimball was commissioned by the city to produce mounted steel sculptures of local fish species.

The Methuen Rail-Trail blog says that while the graffiti is temporary, it "is quite impressive and obviously represents an investment of time and energy." Downstream, Newburyport-Today notes the "very positive response to the new sculptures already from people walking the trail." The interest generated by these installations proves that art can take all forms on rail-trails, even in cities so close to each other.

Top photo from Newburyport-Today; bottom photo from Methuen Rail-Trail blog.

After a Decade of Effort, West Toronto Railpath Opens First Phase

Stephen Miller (RTC) — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 15:29:00 GMT

Above left: A ride down the length of the Railpath. Above right: CBC News Toronto reports on a mural below a Railpath overpass.

On October 30, the first 1.3-mile phase of the West Toronto Railpath had its grand opening, which received rave reviews in the press. This urban rail-with-trail is a strong addition to the city's bicycle and pedestrian network, allowing users to bypass busy roads, including Bloor and Dundas streets, and connect with the GO Transit rail station at Bloor.

View West Toronto Railpath in a larger map

The corridor features public art installations, benches, bike racks, vegetation and signage that reminds path users of the corridor's industrial heritage. Photos of the trail can be found at the Friends of the West Toronto Railpath's Flickr account, on BikingToronto's forums and on the website of a local photographer.

Although trail supporters are excited about the opening of the Railpath's first phase, much work remains to complete the path's route to the heart of Toronto, according to Dale Fallon of Friends of West Toronto Railpath. "Phase Two includes some planning challenges," he said, "but the abandoned rail right-of-way is intact, and we are confident that with strong community support the complete trail will be open in a couple years."

Post updated to include updated hyperlink and quote from Dale Fallon.

Call for Photos: The 2009 National Recreation Trails Photo Contest

Lindsay Martin (RTC) — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 18:30:00 GMT

American Trails sponsors an annual photo contest to highlight the National Recreation Trails (NRT) Program. It's not too late to enter the 2009 contest – the deadline is Tuesday, December 15. There are 21 award categories spanning trail use, trail management, trail features and artistic merit. Photos of any designated National Recreation Trail are eligible. Search the NRT database to find trails near you, or visit American Trails for contest details and to view photos entered into this year's contest.

Detroit's Dequindre Cut Greenway Gets New Graffiti

Stephen Miller (RTC) — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 17:04:00 GMT

Via Blogroll member M-Bike.org comes news of freshly-painted graffiti along the Dequindre Cut Greenway in Detroit, Mich. But don't worry - this public art was sponsored by the Detroit RiverFront Conservancy, Contemporary Art Institute of Detroit and the College for Creative Studies' community+public arts DETROIT Initiative. It looks like a great addition to a corridor already known for its incredible graffiti, and a Midwest version of the recently-completed graffiti mural along the Metropolitan Branch Trail in Washington, D.C.

Photo of existing graffiti in the Dequindre Cut corridor prior to trail construction by ifmuth on Flickr.

D.C.'s largest mural painted adjacent to future rail-trail

Stephen Miller (RTC) — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 00:29:00 GMT

At left, D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty cuts the ribbon with artists and community leaders on the city's largest mural, entitled "From Edgewood to the Edge of the World." Photo: Stephen Miller/Rails-to-Trails Conservancy.

Graffiti has long been a fact of life in the District of Columbia, and the rail corridor that runs through the Edgewood and Eckington neighborhoods in the city's Northeast quadrant is home to plenty of illegal tagging and art. Instead of whitewashing walls only to have them be marked again weeks later, the District government has begun to connect youth with artists who help them hone their skills as part of the city's Summer Youth Employment Program.

One result of this effort is what is now the city's largest mural, covering a wall over 1,000 feet long adjacent to the Rhode Island Avenue Red Line station and the Metropolitan Branch Trail. A 1.5-mile long section of the trail is currently under construction next to the mural, and will soon connect Northeast neighborhoods to Union Station and downtown.

The arts group behind the mural is Albus Cavus, which was hired by the D.C. Commission on the Arts and Humanities to work with Summer Youth Employment Program participants on the mural, located beside a shopping center. Through our work on encouraging community engagement around the planned trail, Rails-to-Trails Conservancy helped connect the commission and the artists with the shopping center's manager.

The mural was painted over the summer at a rapid pace, with artists from across the nation moving to the Edgewood neighborhood for the summer to participate. Neighborhood residents appreciate the new art, as well. "The artwork is just amazing," Wayne Sumpter told the Washington Post. "It definitely gets your attention. It wakes you up. When I come through here I'm not thinking about a lot, but the wall stopped me. It pulls you to it."

UPDATE: A short documentary about the mural was shown on Current TV. Watch it here: