Title
RESOLUTION AUTHORIZING ACCEPTANCE OF A $89,078 GRANT FROM THE MINNESOTA DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES AND MINNESOTA LAKE SUPERIOR COASTAL PROGRAM FOR WAYFINDING SIGNAGE AND REST STOPS ON THE WESTERN WATERFRONT TRAIL.
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CITY PROPOSAL:
RESOLVED, that the proper city officials are hereby authorized to accept the grant award and enter into an agreement substantially in the form attached hereto as exhibit A, with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, said funds deposited into 452-030-4210-01-HANDHTAX-1501-02 (Tourism & Recreation Projects; Finance; Pass-thru Federal Grants Capital; Western Waterfront Trail Renewal); and 1:1 matching funds of $89,078 from Fund 452 Tourism & Recreation Project bond proceeds.
Statement of Purpose
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE: This resolution authorizes acceptance of a $89,078 grant award from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and Minnesota Lake Superior Coastal Program for wayfinding signage and rest stops on the Western Waterfront Trail consistent with the citywide parks and trails wayfinding plan. Western Waterfront Trail signs and rest stops have not been upgraded since the trail was constructed more than 30 years ago. As a result, original signs and benches are absent or damaged. New equipment will include 11 benches, a new accessible picnic table, and 31 new signs including trail directories at major trailheads and intersections, directional signs, mileage markers, and emergency maps designed to help trail users and emergency responders find each other. The City of Duluth will contribute a 1-to-1, $89,078, match from half-and-half tourism tax proceeds put aside for the purpose of renewing the original Western Waterfront Trail.
A previously awarded $1,000 sub-award grant from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and Minnesota Lake Superior Coastal Program was approved by Council resolution 17-0579R, and went towards the purchase and installation of three trail counters along the Western Waterfront Trail. The trail counters will be used before and after signage installation to assess their impact on trail use.