A master plan study conducted last year focused on development, needs and possible projects for Lake Pat Cleburne.
Jacob Carter Burgess Engineering performed the study, part of which involved interviewing residents, city officials and business leaders to identify needs and wants for the lake.
A network of multi-use trail ranked atop that wish list. A wish that may soon become reality.
U.S. Rep. Chet Edwards, D-Waco, at the request of city leaders, recently secured $250,000 for the first phase of the Lake Pat trail system.
Edwards added the funding to the 2011 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations bill, which passed the House Appropriations Subcommittee on July 1. The measure now awaits a vote by the House and Senate.
“We are very happy for the work Congressman Edwards has done on behalf of this project,” Cleburne Mayor Justin Hewlett said. “This important funding will help spur the development of the Cleburne hiking trails and coincides with the city’s master parks plan.”
The money, if approved, would fund a multi-use recreational trail of about a mile, said Max Robertson, Cleburne Parks and Recreation director.
“It will be about 10 to 12 feet in width,” Robertson said. “So, good for walking, jogging, bicycling.”
Dogs are also welcome, Robertson joked, unlike the city’s Winston Patrick McGregor Park, which is, oddly enough, named after the land donor’s dog.
“Sure, dogs are OK, as long as they’re on a leash,” Robertson said.
The hope is to eventually encircle the lake with a walking trail of about 13 miles, Robertson said.
“This [funding] is a very positive sign, and a gift that we really didn’t expect at this point,” Robertson said. “We’ve had a lot of people comment that we need to have a walking trail out there, and this is a great start to the master plan project.”
The master plan envisions numerous projects, including restrooms, an amphitheater and performance area, playgrounds, camping facilities, exercise hubs, a marina, wetlands preservation area and other amenities.
All of which will take time, Robertson said. City council members have yet to approve any specific projects but did voice enthusiasm in October when JCB officials delivered the findings of the study.
“We’re talking about projects that will be done in stages over the next several years,” Robertson said.
Lake Pat, of course, has much to offer residents and tourists right now, Robertson said.
“Besides fishing, boating and swimming, we have our new golf course that opened last year,” Robertson said. “There’s the Chisholm Trail Outdoor Museum. We put a bird watching area in at Buddy Stewart Park not long ago. So, there’s a lot to do out there, and we’re hoping this walking trail project will be the beginning of more things to come.”
Johnson County
Edwards gives proposed Lake Pat trail a boost
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