The Guthrie County Conservation Department has received several grants for upcoming projects.

Conservation Director Brad Halterman says that the department received a Community Foundation grant for the Guthrie County Historical Village, and will be using the funds to paint the main building. He explains that over the years, the building has had some additions added on to it, and that this has caused it to be three different but similar shades, and that the planned project will paint the entirety of the building so that it is all one matching color.

Halterman tells Raccoon Valley Radio of another project regarding signage.

“We also received a grant to get a couple of new signs. One sign will be going up down at Lenon Mill Park. It’ll be a sign to mark it as such for Lenon Mill Park and the historical site. A nice big, bright, colorful sign with our new logo on that. We’ll have some landscaping around it too.”

Halterman adds that the second sign for the project will be installed near the Conservation Board Office,similar to the one for Lenon Mill Park. He shares that the biggest project though, is one that has been in conjunction with the Greene County Conservation Board on the Raccoon River Valley Trail (RRVT).

“Basically, the project runs from Yale, here in Guthrie County, up to Winkleman Switch in Greene County. So it’s right around 13.7 miles. That stretch of trail is deteriorating asphalt and over the years, obviously, it’s continued to deteriorate. The project was originally worked on by both county conservation boards. So we’re continuing that partnership to work together for that.”

Halterman mentions that the project just received a Legacy Grant from Grow Greene County Gaming Corporation, which will dole out $125,000 per year for four years, for a total of $500,000. He says that the first two projects will begin at the start of this summer, and that the RRVT project is shovel ready as soon as they have all the funds needed, but that it shouldn’t be much longer.