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11. Project Background <br />The purpose of this study is to determine the best and most feasible reconnection of the John <br />Wayne trail. The John Wayne Pioneer Trail is part of Washington State's Cross -state Iron <br />Horse State Park trail system, which follows the route of the former "Milwaukee Road" Rail- <br />road. Linking the trail directly through the CWU campus has been considered, as well as a <br />northern and southern bypass route. There is support for the central "direct -link" concept, <br />however use by horses and wagons through a dense urban campus creates many potential con- <br />flicts between pedestrians, bicyclists, vehicles and horses. <br />Over the past 6 years, a northern John Wayne Trail QW f) bypass route around CWU has been <br />studied by the City of Ellensburg, Kittitas County, and the State Parks & Recreation Commis- <br />sion. This bypass is intended for horses and wagons that will be using the cross state regional <br />trail. A campus and southern route option were also explored (CWU, `98) but are not as fea- <br />sible as the northern route due to dense urban development and several road and highway <br />crossings. The southern route that has been considered would connect the John Wayne Pioneer <br />Trail to Irene Rhienhart park which extends along the Yakima River. However this route is a <br />long way out of the way with many obstacles (including 1 -go), many road crossings and devel- <br />oped areas. The Central route through the campus is a direct link, but it is problematic to mix <br />horses and wagon with bikes and pedestrians. <br />The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission encouraged and assisted in obtaining <br />funds for a new and more thorough study to look at various options to reconnect the route for <br />the variety of users including equestrians. The best route is clearly the northern bypass route. <br />In designing the trail system several issues need to be considered. Foremost among these are <br />the concerns of landowners, managers and citizens along the trail corridor. Without their <br />support the reconnection of the trail would not be feasible. Some of the issues of greateast <br />concern are privacy, safety and crime, trespassing, and property values. These issues are dis- <br />cussed and recommendations have been presented for each issue. <br />,john Wayne Pioneer Trail Reconnection Study Final Report September 2001 <br />5 <br />