Area Projects get State Funding

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources will offer new safe spaces for recreation and tourism in three communites in our area through money from the new Abandoned Mine Land Economic Revitalization Program.

These projects have recieved preliminary approval from the federal Office of Surface Mine Reclamation and Enforcement.

The projects include $2 million in Coshocton County to be used as the Richard Downing Airport. The project includes reclamation of 6,000 feet of dangerous highwall left on the edges of the airport when it was constructed. They’ll also see additional funding to construct a new 7,040 square foot hangar for overnight storage aircraft. The airport was build on an old surface coal mine.
 

$4 million will go to the revitalization of the historic Tecumseh Theater in the Perry County community of Shawnee. ODNR will also reclaim two abandoned mine land features on the edge of town. The goal is to bring the theater back to life and increase tourism.

$2.36 million will go to the Buckeye Trail in Perry and Athens County area. The project will construct nearly 20 miles of trail through Wayne National Forest and will reroute the trail away from the town of Shawnee and Burr Oak State Park making it safer and allowing for compete forested hiking experience between those two points.

Nine pedestrian bridges will be built to allow passage over water, and a loop trail will take hikers around Tecumseh Lake.  Three AML features adjacent to the newly routed trail will also be reclaimed.

 
Each project will need to go through environmental planning and design before final approval by the Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement.