To the editor:

I attended last night’s meeting of the Saranac Lake Village Board where a resolution to support construction of a trail was debated at considerable length. The theme echoed repeatedly by supporters of rail restoration was that there could be a parallel trail and therefore preserve the railroad. Many speakers criticized the DEC for not following through and creating such a trail as prescribed in the 1996 Unit Management Plan. Keith Gorgas, for instance, read from the part of the plan that stated that the DEC was to develop parallel trails “to the maximum extent possible.”

For sure, that line is in the plan, but more to the point is the following that is found on Page xvii of the 1996 UMP: “However, because the Corridor is flanked in some areas by extensive wetlands and in others by rugged topography, the potential for the development of a continuous parallel trail within the Corridor is severely limited.”

How then can the DEC be faulted for “not following the plan” by failing to create a parallel trail when the plan itself says such a trail is not possible?

Sincerely,

Tony Goodwin

Keene