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December 14, 2007

OHV park plans moving forward

By Karen Williamson

KARENW@CULLMANTIMES.COM

Cullman County Economic Development Director Sam Danford told County Commissioners this week that plans for the Off-Highway Vehicles Park are moving ahead.

Commissioners approved the master plan on Tuesday which designates building sites and trails.

Danford, who is in charge of the project, said the next step is to work with the Corps of Engineers on wetlands delineation and archeologists who will have to check trail sites for remains and artifacts.

Planners are hoping to turn a portion of wetlands into a mud bog for four-wheelers or highly modified four-wheel-drive vehicles such as trucks and Jeeps.

“We know that there are wetlands down there,” said Danford.

The wetlands on the property were cleared and cut by previous owners.

“We can go and re-plant hardwoods on wetlands that have been clear cut, and we can exchange that for use of wetlands,” Danford said.

When wetlands are present, property owners have to buy into a bank that buys wetlands elsewhere before any of the wetlands can be used.

“We would normally have to buy wetlands out of the bank; but if we re-plant what we destroy on our property, we can use another area of the wetlands,” she said.

Auburn University anthropologist John Cottier will assist the county commission in surveying trails. Cottier, who is an associate professor in the department of Sociology, Anthropology and Social Work, toured the property last week.

“We don’t want them to survey the entire property because that would be an enormous amount of money,” Danford told commissioners Tuesday.

If Cottier’s team were to find an Indian burial ground up on a knob, they couldn’t disturb the ground, said Danford.

Danford said John Strickland with the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs has been very instrumental in the project by funding the park. He is retiring at year’s end. His replacement, Rob Grant, drove from Montgomery to attend the public meeting on the OHV park held in late November.

“Mr. Grant seems real supportive of this project. If they are supportive of it in Montgomery where we are getting our funding from, it helps it to run a little smoother,” said Danford.

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