By Kevin Boneske
Staff Writer

HOWARD – The Howard village board authorized staff Monday, April 23, to apply for a couple of grants through the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.

Board members approved a resolution to submit an outdoor grant application to the DNR for the Duck Creek Trail project from Cardinal Lane to the Escanaba-Lake Superior railroad track.

If the grant is approved, the project could be constructed in 2019 or 2020.

The trail would connect the trail on Cardinal Lane to Riverview Drive via a new pedestrian bridge adjacent to the existing Escanaba-Lake Superior bridge that crosses Duck Creek and intersects with Riverview Drive.

From a regional standpoint, with the trails planned to be constructed in the next couple of years, village Community Development Director Dave Wiese informed the board this additional section of trail in the village would provide a system that connects Pamperin Park to the Mountain Bay Trail along Velp Avenue.

The fiscal impact of the project is estimated at $400,000 with the village applying apply with for a 50 percent cost share grant.

Board members also backed a resolution to submit an outdoor grant application to the DNR to install lights at two soccer field at the Akzo Nobel Sports Complex.

That project could also be constructed in 2019 or 2020 if the grant is approved.

Wiese said the village has been contacted by the local soccer organization about lighting two of the fields with the group planning to raise a large portion of the money necessary to fund half of the cost of the lighting, for which the fiscal impact is estimated at $300,000 with the village applying for a 50 percent cost share grant.