PANEL: TRAIL TOWNS AND RURAL TRANSFORMATION
Since 2007 Trail Town Programs® have proven to be an effective approach for growing rural economies. Learn about some of the most innovative and successful Trail Town models established to date and how they’ve been used to revitalize and transform rural communities across the U.S. and New York State.
Guest Speakers
David A. Kahley, Co-founder, President and CEO of The Progress Fund
David A. Kahley, Co-founder, President and CEO of The Progress Fund
The Progress Fund is a nonprofit Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) with assets of $55 Million, serving Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Maryland. The Progress Fund helped develop the concept of Trail Towns and then launched the Trail Town Program®, which was the first and best documented economic development program in the nation to capture the potential of rail-trail based recreation. The Progress Fund has received numerous awards and recognition for their innovative investment model, including the “Placemaking Award for Excellence” from the Urban Land Institute in Pittsburgh in 2015.
seth wheat, Director of Tourism Development, Kentucky Department of Tourism
Seth has worked for Kentucky Tourism for 10 years. Currently, he works for the Department of Tourism in tourism development. In this role, he oversees the Kentucky Adventure Tourism initiatives and sports tourism initiatives. Prior to joining the Department of Tourism in October of 2016, Seth worked in the Adventure Tourism Program for the Kentucky Tourism, Arts & Heritage Cabinet, where he helped implement the Kentucky Trail Town Program, the Cross Kentucky Master Trail Plan and managed all digital content. Seth is a native of Knoxville, Tennessee but grew up in Pikeville, Kentucky. An adventure enthusiast himself, Seth enjoys hunting, fishing, camping, hiking and paddling.
Russell Clark, Program Officer, Rivers, Trails and Conservation Program with the National Park Service
Russell is based out of a Field Office at Mammoth Cave National Park and provides technical planning assistance to local communities to create greenway and blueway trails throughout Kentucky, working closely with the state’s Kentucky Trail Town Program. Prior to working for the National Park Service, Russell was the owner of a Community Planning, Landscape Architecture and Construction Management Company in northern Michigan for thirty-two years. He has worked nationally and internationally on recreation, resort and community development projects for private and public sector clients.
Dylan Carey, Project Director for Parks & Trail New York (PTNY)
Dylan Carey, Project Director for Parks & Trail New York (PTNY)
Dylan currently manages PTNY’s community trails and active transportation efforts throughout the state, including promotion, stewardship, planning and advocacy. Dylan has helped develop programming for PTNY’s annual Bicyclists Bring Business workshop, Bike Friendly New York business certification program, the annual Canal Clean Sweep volunteer cleanup day, and local stewardship of the trail system through the Adopt-a-Trail and Trail Ambassadors programs. As part of PTNY’s annual advocacy agenda, Dylan leads efforts to expand the state’s active transportation network through the creation of statewide trails and greenways and the adoption of policies to strengthen these efforts, such as Complete Streets.
Russell Hirschler, Executive Director of the Upper Valley Trails Alliance (UVTA)
Russell Hirschler, Executive Director of the Upper Valley Trails Alliance (UVTA)
Russell has served as the Executive Director of the Upper Valley Trails Alliance since 2008, where he is responsible for the day to day operations as well as the future vision of the organization. The Upper Valley Trails Alliance is a regional network led by UVTA and made up of people, organizations and towns committed to the improvement and sustainable development of public trails in the Upper Connecticut River Valley that crosses Vermont and New Hampshire. UVTA administers TrailFinder.info, a free, interactive mapping site designed to help Vermont and New Hampshire residents and visitors find hiking, walking, snowshoeing, mountain biking, cross-country skiing, and paddling trails across the state while also promoting stewardship and sustainable development in the region.