DAYTON-Adam Schmidtgall, Principal Engineer, and Brian Hansen, Project Engineer for Anderson/Perry & Associates, provided an update about progress on the Touchet Valley Trail design at the February meeting of the Port of Columbia commissioners.

Schmidtgall said the intention is to have 30-percent of the trail design completed by the end of February to submit to the Port commissioners for review.

"We believe a month and a half is enough time for a community meeting in mid-April," he said.

Schmidtgall said the engineers had worked closely with the Touchet Valley Trail Steering Committee, county officials, city officials from Dayton and Waitsburg, and others to get to this point in the planning.

"It has taken a lot of coordination to get to this point. We feel it is pretty important to make sure this path is headed in the right direction," he said.

In June 2020, the Port commissioners voted to forward the Trail Concept Plan to Anderson/Perry & Associates for their use as they continue studying the trail's feasibility and work on the preliminary design.

The Touchet Valley Trail Committee's vision is to link the communities of Waitsburg and Dayton with nearby recreational opportunities featuring local heritage, river access, and scenic landscapes while stimulating the economic and social vitality of the region.

The Touchet Valley Trail project history can be found on the Port of Columbia website at portofcolumbia.org.