HONESDALE, PA – The Wayne County Commissioners have announced that Woodland Design Associates issued the final draft of the Wayne County trail feasibility study which will be presented at a public meeting on Thursday, February 27 at the White Mills Fire Department Hall on Route 6. The meeting will begin at 7 p.m.

“The project began with a grass-roots effort by a newly formed group of recreational and environmental organizations called the Wayne Pike Trails & Waterways Alliance to revive, enhance or build an interconnected network of trails in the area,” according to a press release from the county.

The alliance’s project would ideally allow create a trail running along the Lackawaxen River—and the operating rail—bed that connects Honesdale and Hawley and allows for recreational hiking, biking, kayaking, fishing and other nature activities.

When the idea was presented to the commissioners, they agreed to allow the county to serve as the applicant for necessary grant funding from the PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resource.

The feasibility study focused on the potential trail along the Lackawaxen River from Honesdale to Hawley, primarily along the operating rail bed. A community-based process examined the opportunities to create connections between key community recreational resources and the local economy.

“The trail concept plan depicts the large scale and long-range vision for what the trail system could become—using the river, railroad, and U.S. Route 6 corridors to interconnect key community resources, existing trails, recreational facilities, economic hubs and cultural opportunities,” the release reads.

After presentation on February 27, the plan will be available online for public review and comment.