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Latest About Coosa River Annex Property

 

September 21, 2011

TOP Trails/Coosa River Storage Annex Update To All Who Stated Interest:

THE PARK IS NOW BEGINNING TO BE DEVELOPED!

It seems so long ago when we first began this process. However, patience pays off and we are now seeing the fruits of our labor. TOP Trails development has begun!

The Park Board in the month of September has met three weeks in a row and have worked through aggressive agendas each time. They have approved many resolutions, advertised RFP (Request for Proposal) for a security firm, RFQ (Request for Qualifications) for OHV Trail Design Specialist and RFQ for OHV Trail Building Specialist, all which have a deadline of September 30, 2011. In addition they signed a contract with C.D. Roberts Associates, Inc. as the Professional Services Group (PSG) to manage the development, design and operations of the Park. I am representing C.D. Roberts Assoc., before the Board and also as the Grant Administrator and Grant Writer. My representation is as an individual and not through Cheaha Trail Riders. The PSG is already in the process of estimating the cost for Master Planning for the Board.

The PSG has already identified equipment, tools, vehicles, earth moving machinery, etc. at Alabama Dept. of Economic and Community Affairs (ADECA) Surplus yard and will be working to purchase these this week. Once the security firm has been selected, temporary HQ will be set up at the Park and the equipment will be brought on site for use in development and maintenance of the Park. The Board is planning to select a Security Firm that will hire locally where possible, so they can provide jobs for those in the area. If you have an interest in working as a Security Guard at TOP Trails, you are welcome to send me your resume and I will give it to the Board to pass on to the Security Firm for consideration. Make sure to include in your resume, your contact information and note that it is for Security. The gate will remain open to visitors for a while without charge, but vandals and those wishing to create mischief will be identified and police action will proceed in these cases.

Timber will begin to be cut the end of September and will mostly happen on the Northeast end of the property. The timber will be thinned in this area and later there will be a clear cut in the area which will contain the 1200 yard rifle range. If you are riding in the Park, slow down and watch for timber trucks and crews. You should definitely slow down at all crossroads.

Compliances will be obtained from the Corps of Engineer and other agencies. Once the Trail Design Specialist has been selected, work will begin to determine what is needed in repair and maintenance to the existing trail systems.

There are many other items that the Board has passed that will speed the process of development of the Park. Hopefully soon, we will call for a Volunteer Work Day at the Park and will produce some charts on the Master Plan to all the Volunteers who attend. I will send an email out announcing when this will happen. If you have not already done so and would like to be placed on the list of volunteers, you may respond to this email and ask to be placed on the volunteer list. If you have a specific area of interest such as OHV, Equestrian, Firing Range, etc. make sure to note this in your response.

Thanks and help us make TOP Trails the Recreation Destination of the Southeast and the USA. Keep a watch on our website for more updates.

 

August 2011

- TOP Trails Board members, several, attended the National Shooting Competition in New York and came back with valuable information about the potential for the shooting complex at TOP trails. The Board contracted with a consulting company to help in the design, development and securing of funding for the shooting complex.

- A couple of the Board members attended the Southeastern Equestrian Trails Conference in Auburn to promote TOP Trails and to also support Danny Hubbard's presentation of the park to the conference. Along with Glenn Myers, all of them were received with open arms and excitement about the potential Equestrian and Livestock facilities and trails that are designed in TOP Trails. Several volunteers asked to be a part of the Equestrian design and development, of which the Board received with joy.

- The Board made application at ADECA Surplus so they can purchase used equipment and supplies at a fraction of their cost to be used at TOP Trails. Application approval is pending at this time, but is expected to be approved at any time.

- TOP Trials selected a Professional Services Group to manage the development and operations of the Park. A master plan for the Park should be ready sometime in September 2011. The Board is in the process of writing another grant pre-application for LWCF funding of an additional $50K. Hopefully this grant will be approved later in the year.

- The Board approved the Cheaha Trail Riders, Inc. to have their annual Make-A-Wish event at the Brecon Springs property on Saturday October 29, 2011. CTR will promote the Park along with holding the MAW and Moonlight Ride that Saturday night.

- ADECA informed TOP Trails Board that they must follow through with concurrences from the environment and cultural authorities such as CORP of Engineers, ADEM, Alabama Historical Society, etc. before they can begin to turn new ground. However, existing facilities such as the igloos, roads, bathrooms, etc. can see work begin immediately since this ground was disturbed decades ago. Since a very thorough study was performed back in the 1990's on the environment, historical and cultural affects of the property, it should not take long to get approval from these authorities, with the exception of the CORP.

- The Board is working on setting up meetings with Senator Sessions and Governor Bentley to present the development plans and to seek funding other than existing Recreational Trails Program and LWCF (Land Water Conservation Fund) grants. The Park is expected to employ over 100 jobs at its maturity and jobs generated by local businesses outside the park could be in the hundreds.

May 2011

From this point forward I will refer to the Coosa River Storage Annex/Brecon Annex as TOP TRAILS. TOP TRAILS
is the new name given to the park and stands for Talladega (Lincoln) Outdoor Park. The Park Authority Board
has been busy passing resolutions and they are very close to beginning the development of the park. Here
are a few of the tasks that have been completed recently:

- Contracted with a Timber Management company to determine timber health, where to thin, where to cut as
relates to upcoming venues and parking lots
- Contracted with a timber company to begin the thinning process and cutting where venues and parking lots will
be located
- The Brecon Springs property, around 15 acres, was deeded to the Park Authority by Talladega County and
the City of Talladega to become part of the Park
- Has heard presentations from several security firms in preparation of securing the construction and development
- Set up and managed a booth at the first annual Alabama Trails Conference in Fairhope, AL, which was held in
April 2011. A great success!
- Some of the Board members are planning to attend the National Shooting Competition in the state of New York
to learn more about firing range development
- Have developed a website called Toptrailsonline. The link is: http://www.toptrailsonline.com/
- Have contracted with a graphics art firm to develop a brochure for the Park to be distributed throughout all the
Alabama Welcome Centers

There are still a lot of tasks to be completed, but the Board is actively working hard to begin the development phase
of the park. The first phase of the park development will see the OHV and Horse trails groomed, repaired, some
rerouted, signage for directions/difficulty/informational/etc and trailhead facilities built, temporary welcome park mobile
trailer, shower and bath trailer to be installed, along with other activity. So far, the Park has obtained, with the help of
Cheaha Trail Riders, grants and donations totally around $900,000. Yamaha Motors has just this month awarded a
grant of $13,900 to go towards the installation of signage on all the trails as a result of Cheaha Trail Riders submitting a
grant on behalf of the Park Authority. Polaris donated $500 to the park just recently, with more to come. Honda
Motors continues to donate to Cheaha Trail Riders to help support OHV efforts throughout the nation. In addition,
the first phase timber thinning will produce around $300,000. The Horse Council of Alabama has submitted a
Recreational Trails Program grant request for $100,000 (prepared by the Cheaha Trail Riders) and an individual
in the Talladega County area has stated he would donate $50,000 towards the Equestrian development. If this
grant is awarded, the first year total development funding will be around $1,400,000.

Soon we will be calling for volunteers to come and help with the clean up and grooming of trails and I hope that
you will become a part of the volunteer force at TOP TRAILS. Once the development begins, the official opening of the
OHV and Horse Trails will possibly be within 10-12 months. This Park will become one of the nations leading outdoor
parks when development is completed within the next 10-15 years. Trails of all types will be developed, OHV and Horse
trails will continue to be developed annually to keep the excitement in the riding, the ZipRider will be developed in the
second year and much more.

In the meantime, help us keep TOP TRAILS clean when you come to visit, by picking up trash, putting out
campfires, removing debris from the trails, treading lightly where possible, being safe by wearing protective gear and
anything you can do to help make this system the best in the nation. Remember, one way to close down an OHV park is
to do stupid things, getting hurt or killed by not wearing protective gear, not observing proper riding techniques, getting
off the trails and more. We are seeing trails close throughout the nation because of some of these reasons that
can be avoided.

By the way, if you visit TOP TRAILS, make sure to let the local businesses know that you are in the area to visit
TOP TRAILS. This helps us promote the development to the community and to help them see that revenue has
already begun to impact their businesses.

If you have not already sent me an email and would like to become a volunteer in the future, please reply here and I will
place your name on the volunteer list. DannyHubbard@CheahaTrailRiders.com

February 2011
Park Board Meets and Determines the Need for Borrowing
Money to Jumpstart Park Development
Click Here for Daily Home Article

Current Processes
Click on Links for More Information

Request for Qualified Security Individuals

Park Amenities

Cheaha Trail Riders, Inc. have worked long and hard to see 2833 acres of National Park Service (NPS) property to be developed into a multi-recreational facility with OHV trails at its core. As is proven by OHV Parks throughout the USA, these venues generate millions of revenue dollars annually for the local communities and this park would do the same. The Talladega property is formally the Coosa River Annex Depot which was developed just prior to World War II as an ammunition depot. The Brecon area was, at that time, a powder and ammunition producing facility for the war effort. The National Park Service was given responsibility for the property and was to give the property away as a result of Base Closure and Realignment.

Our Core Team has been fighting to see the development of this property into a first class complex.

Our Core Team has designed a multitude of recreational venues for the property which are included in the plan. We have presented over nine states revenue impact studies supporting our estimates of revenue that could be generated for the surrounding businesses. These revenue estimates could be well over $10-15 million annually to the area when the park is fully mature in ten years. This would be a fantastic boost to the area economy and to the State of Alabama.

Some of the venues, but not all, that we have included in the development are:

- Over 150 miles of OHV Trails
- 700 foot OHV Mud Bog for competition events, misting tunnels, washing stations
- ZipRider (zip line) just over 3800 feet in length (see www.ziprider.com)
- Equestrian and Livestock Arenas and Center and Equestrian Trail Systems
- Hiking, Biking, Bicycling and Walking Trail Systems
- Over 300 Campsites from primitive to luxury with a swimming pool for the campers
- Restroom Facilities throughout, Pavilion Rentals (For Family and Corporate Outings), Picnic Areas
- Welcome Center
- Motocross Facilities
- Skateboard and Rollerblade Facilities and Rock Climbing Walls
- Several stocked lakes with walking trails around each
- Indoor Pistol ranges and 1200-yard rifle range, Circular Skeet/trap, 3D archery, BB, Pellet, etc.
- National Class Paint Ball Courses both natural and competition style
- Remote control airplane and car facility, go-kart racing facility
- Scenic viewing tower on top of Gents Mtn.

And much more!

Below are some pictures of the complex as it exists today. There are over 136 igloos within the property along with beautiful scenic overlooks, streams, ponds, turkey, deer and other local critters. If you would like for us to keep you informed, you may email us at: dannyhubbard@cheahatrailriders.com
We will be happy to put you on our email list for updates. We promise not to send you frivolous emails, just information pertinent to OHV and especially the status of the Talladega property.

TMARC Pictures (Click on Pictures to Enlarge)

1-Sign at Entrance, 2-Front Entrance Road, 3-One of the Ponds, 4-One of the Streams

1-Scenic Oak, 2-Fall Foliage on Gents Mtn., 3-Scenic Overlook on Gents Mtn., 4-Trail on Gents Mtn. which use to be old guard road.

1-Outside of one of the 136 igloos, 2-Inside an igloo.

Directions/Maps

The property is located in East Central Alabama about 9 miles south of Interstate20 between Birmingham, Al and Atlanta, Ga. It is almost adjacent to the northeast side of the Talladega, Alabama city limits in an area called Brecon. It is ride at your own risk.
Click Here for Directions, GPS Overview of Existing Trails

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