Award Winning Trail: Cochran Mill Park Trail - Georgia

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2016 RTP Achievement Awards

Award-Winning Trail and Greenway Projects

Winners have been announced for the 2016 "Annual Achievement Awards" in recognition of outstanding use of Recreational Trails Program (RTP) funds. The awards ceremony hosted by the Coalition for Recreational Trails was held in Washington, D.C. on June 8, 2016 at the U.S. House of Representatives offices (see photo below). The awards are part of annual efforts by national trails and outdoor recreation organizations to promote the importance of RTP funding to States across America.

Cochran Mill Park Trail - Georgia

Maintenance and Rehabilitation

Sponsor/Partners: City of Chattahoochee Hills
Congressional District: 13
Senators: Johnny Isakson (R-GA) and David Perdue (R-GA)

Located in Chattahoochee Hills Georgia, just 20 miles southwest of the Atlanta Airport, Cochran Mill Park, with 800 acres of woods, fields, and streams, features stunning waterfalls, huge boulders, rock outcrops, wildflowers, native azaleas, mountain laurel, and the ruins of three historic mills. In 2010, donations from almost 400 local families in the City of Chattahoochee Hills allowed the City to purchase Cochran Mill Park from Fulton County.

In 2013, a $100,000 Recreational Trails Program Grant from the Georgia Department of Natural Resources provided the funds to create a remarkable park transformation. Eight miles of new sustainable multi-use trails have been designed and constructed and ten miles of old trails have been rehabilitated.

Other park improvements include a 2.5 mile Interpretive Trail, additional parking, an information kiosk, and a trail entrance arch. An accessible equestrian mounting block is easily accessible from the new parking areas. Trail maps have been developed, with trail markers installed throughout the length of the park.

Most of the work to upgrade the park has been done by community volunteers who have donated more than 2000 hours and earned over $28,000 in matching funds. With the additional match from private donations and in-kind work, the total project cost was $137,000. Thanks to the RTP Grant and the work of many volunteers, Cochran Mill Park now has 18 miles of sustainable multiple-use trails shared by hikers, horseback riders, mountain bikers, and trail runners. ..

Read more here:
http://www.americantrails.org/awards/CRT16awards/Cochran-Mill-Park-Trail-GA-CRT-2016.html