Elected officials from Grand Junction, Scranton and Greene County, along Greene County engineer’s office staff, representatives of the Greene County Chamber, Jefferson Matters: Main Street and the Lincoln Highway Association were among the two dozen people at a meeting Tuesday in Jefferson to discuss a corridor management plan (CMP) for the Lincoln Highway. Scranton, Jefferson and Grand Junction are Greene County’s three Lincoln Highway towns. The 460 miles of the historic roadway traverse 13 Iowa counties and 43 Iowa towns.
The meeting was facilitated by John Mazzello of Prairie Rivers of Iowa. Prairie Rivers of Iowa is a non-profit organization contracted by the Iowa Department of Transportation to manage the intrinsic qualities of the Lincoln Highway.
A meeting similar to Tuesday’s meeting has already been held in State Center. A meeting will be held in Carroll soon.
Mazzello explained the “corridor” as being all the sites and events that would have relevance to Lincoln Highway travelers. They might not be on the highway, but within an easy drive. “Without a plan, it might be difficult to keep tabs on all that’s going on, on all the groups that might need assistance…. The plan is a way to keep track of all that, but more importantly, to keep track of how we can work with all the groups, with community members, cities and towns and counties to make the Lincoln Highway a really unified, really positive experience for travelers,” Mazzello said.
The federal government will be interested in the parts of the plan dealing with the construction of the road itself, but there are other elements of interest, such as using it as an economic development or educational tool, Mazzella said.
The public meetings are part of the second phase of a three phase, three year project to develop a written corridor management plan. The first phase, done in 2014, was to catalog what is already being done to promote the Lincoln Highway and what points of interest and events take place along the highway or very near by. The Iowa Lincoln Highway Association has been every active, due in part to the work of Jefferson residents Bob Owens and Bob and Joyce Ausberger. The CMP will be a way to share that information with other Lincoln Highway states.
The second phase includes public meetings to gather input from residents of Lincoln Highway communities. “The point of these meetings is to find out what your dreams are for the Lincoln Highway, what a really excellent Lincoln Highway would look like,” he said.
The Lincoln Highway is designated as a state historic byway. A CMP is required to gain national scenic byway designation. There is currently no funding in the national scenic byway program, but planning groups like Prairie Rivers hope that funding will be available in the years ahead. That funding could go to infrastructure and bridges, or things like informational kiosks, public art, planning or marketing. The IDOT, in working with Prairie Rivers, is assuring Iowa will be ready should that funding be restored.
At the Tuesday meeting, participants brainstormed on two questions: How has having the Lincoln Highway passing through your community since 1913 enhanced the community? and What would a vibrant, supported, successful Lincoln Highway be?
Suggestions for improvements along the corridor included more Lincoln Highway signage off other roads, preservation of the historic buildings along the highway, more public art (perhaps murals), development of outdoor spaces along the highway, interpretative information about the wind farms along the road, and activities like runs or bike rides along the Lincoln Highway.
There were no committees formed at the meeting and no expectation for further involvement in the process. Writing the plan, the third phase of the project, is slated for 2016.
The CMP, when completed, will be shared with all 43 Lincoln Highway communities. Persons who would like to provide input on either of the questions discussed at Tuesday’s meeting can contact Mazzello at jmazzello@prrcd.org
