Recreation Trails Program Grant Announced for Gibson and Obion Counties

$160,000 Grant for Trail, Drainage Improvements

KENTON, Tenn. – Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation Deputy Commissioner Brock Hill today presented a $160,000 Recreational Trails Program (RTP) grant to the city of Kenton in Gibson and Obion counties for trail improvements.

“This recreational grant will allow the city of Kenton to improve their walking trail,” Hill said. “By improving the recreational opportunities in this community, this grant also enhances the efforts to promote a healthy Tennessee.”

The RTP grant will enable the city of Kenton to renovate approximately 5,400 linear feet of existing trail at the Kenton City Park. In addition, the grant will allow for drainage improvements and repaving. 

The Recreational Trails Program is a federally-funded program established to distribute funding for diverse recreation trail projects. The funds are available to federal, state and local government agencies, as well as non-profit organizations under certain conditions.

Recreational Trails Program grants may be used for non-routine maintenance and restoration of existing trails, development and rehabilitation, trailside or trailhead facilities such as restrooms, kiosks and parking lots, construction of new trails and land acquisition for recreational trails or corridors.

Funding for RTP grants is provided by the Federal Highway Administration through the federal Safe, Accountable, Flexible and Efficient Transportation Equity Act. The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation administers this grant program for the state. The maximum federal share for each project is 80 percent, with RTP grant recipients providing a 20 percent match.

Grant recipients are selected through a scoring process with careful consideration given to the projects that met the selection criteria and expressed the greatest local recreation need.

To learn more about the RTP grant program and other recreation or conservation-based grant programs available in the future, please visit http://tn.gov/environment/recreation/recreation_grants.shtml.  For more information about the RTP grant program, contact Gerald Parish at 615-532-0538 or Gerald.Parish@tn.gov.  

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