Old Forge Nets $250,000 for Mountain Bike Trails
Press release provided.
OLD FORGE NY--Town of Webb to receive NY State grant for Mountain Bike Trail Development
Robin Hill, executive director of LivingADK (CAP-21), last week announced that Webb has been awarded a $250,000 grant through the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation for expansion of the mountain bike trail system at McCauley Mountain Recreation Center in Old Forge.
The successful grant application was compiled by LivingADK and submitted in July, 2021. It was a collaborative effort organized by LivingADK, with assistance from Webb Supervisor Dave Berkstresser and Town Councilman Kurt Gardner, McCauley Mountain Manager Steve Uzdavinis, Old Forge Tourism Director Mike Farmer, the Webb Codes Office, the Central Adirondack Association and Chuck Schweitzer and his team from the Adirondack Foothills Trails Alliance (AFTA). AFTA personnel have undertaken all of the mountain bike trail construction and maintenance, as well as substantial fundraising. Supportive funding for this project will be provided by the Town of Webb, the Central Adirondack Association and AFTA over the next five years.
Additionally, letters of support were submitted by Webb Supervisor Berkstresser, the directors of the Central Adirondack Association and LivingADK, Herkimer County Legislators, Assemblyman Robert Smullen, Congresswoman Elise Stefanik Senator James Tedisco, and AFTA staff. Assemblyman Smullen visited McCauley Mountain Ski and Recreation Area this past summer to assess the impact this grant would have on expanding mountain biking as an important component of family recreation in the area. Smullen was briefed on the plan of further developing McCauley Mountain as a family mountain biking destination and a major tourism asset to Herkimer County, the Town of Webb and surrounding communities.
LivingADK’s Community Development Specialist, Dan Kiefer-Bach, stated “We look forward to assisting the Town of Webb by administering this grant project over the next several years. Support from all our partners this past summer was instrumental in submitting a successful application and we are excited to get this project started”.