[BRUNSWICK] – The Brunswick City Commission yesterday overwhelmingly endorsed the Coastal Georgia Greenway, a proposed 161-mile system of trails traversing coastal Georgia from Florida to South Carolina.

Brunswick’s endorsement brings to 10 the number of municipal and county governments that have expressed support for the project over the past 4 weeks. Brunswick’s Mayor Bryan Thompson states that “Preliminary analysis indicates that the 155-mile trail will pay for itself within three years, with a projected six percent increase in valuation in each county it traverses every year thereafter. It will help provide safe and accessible routes for pedestrians, bikes, scooters and golf carts, will enable mobility-challenged individuals, tie together currently isolated segments of local communities, and enhance the value of residential developments. The Coastal Georgia Greenway will immediately create significant positive economic impact for Georgia’s coastal communities.”

On July 13th, the Jekyll Island Authority also passed supporting resolutions. Jones Hooks, Executive Director, Jekyll Island Authority states, “As Jekyll Island revitalization moves forward, we are looking at more than bricks and mortar. We are looking at opportunities that will allow our guests to enjoy the natural assets of Jekyll Island. Certainly, the Coastal Georgia Greenway Trail fits this goal perfectly. I am pleased to encourage support of the Coastal Georgia Greenway Trails project!”

“As growth in coastal Georgia continues, it is essential that we protect and position for the enjoyment of others our unique cultural and natural assets. The Coastal Georgia Greenway project is one of the important first steps in creating low impact eco-tourism on our coast. The Coastal Georgia Greenway project should help to preserve for future generations our natural and cultural assets thereby assuring an unparalled quality of life on our coast,” says J. Howard Morrison, Jr. of Lebanon Plantation in Savannah.

The City of Savannah is assisting in the grant-writing process and will assist with project administration, when funded. Mayor Otis Johnson of Savannah notes, “The Coastal Georgia Greenway project scores on many fronts: it would boost our economy through improvements to tourism and quality of life, provide recreational opportunities within a short distance of many of our residents, and would serve as a centerpiece of an improved network for nonmotorized transportation. This project would advance goals of our Thrive and Healthy Savannah initiatives, and the City of Savannah is very enthusiastic about efforts to seek funding for the Coastal Georgia Greenway.”

Other coastal Georgia communities have formally endorsed the greenway in the last month:

• Chatham County
• Bryan County
• McIntosh County
• Glynn County
• Darien
• Kingsland
• Riceboro
• Woodbine
• Richmond Hill

Additional endorsements are anticipated in the coming weeks.

The full press release is available here, or you can read on below.

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The Coastal Georgia Greenway Inc. elected its founding board of directors in early September. The eight member board has representatives from four of the six coastal counties that the organization serves.

The Coastal Georgia Greenway lobbies for trail development at the grass roots level. It has partnered with the Coastal Georgia Regional Development Center, city and county governments and related organizations, such as the East Coast Greenway Alliance, the Gullah Geechee National Heritage Corridor and The MillionMile Greenway (MMG). The organization’s mission is to protect and acquire public access to identified trail corridors, plan for trail construction and promote the use of existing and new trails along Coastal Georgia.

Jo Hickson has worked for the Coastal Georgia Greenway since 1993 and believes that the new board will be a boost for the organization. “We now have an organization that can work to develop private sector support for the extensive trail network in coastal Georgia, whereas before most funding was derived from the public sector.

“We know that community leaders and our elected officials see the benefits that trails bring to our historic cities and towns. They know that a safe trail system allows a community to address public health, quality of life, protection of green space, and build its heritage and eco-tourism,” Hickson said.

The following members will initially serve a one-year term on the board and assist the organization with filing for non-profit status:

Dr. Drew Wade: member at large; radiologist with SouthCoast Medical Group, Savannah
Terry Landreth: member at large; owner, Camden Bicycle, St. Marys
Harvey Gilbert: Chatham County Representative; owner, Gilbert Realty Company, Savannah
Rose M. deVries: Chatham County Representative; Vice President – Private Banking, Darby Bank, Savannah
Jamal Touré: Liberty County Representative; owner, Day Clean: the African Soul; Alternate Commissioner, NPS Gullah Geechee National Heritage Corridor Commission
Al Williams: Liberty County Representative; elected State Representative for House District 165
Eunice M. Moore: McIntosh County Representative; Councilwoman, City of Darien
Anne Orr: Camden County Representative; retired attorney, St. Marys

“Current outmoded transportation and land use models are already unsupportable, and projects like the Coastal Georgia Greenway are an excellent means of transforming communities and improving quality of life,” said Drew Wade.

He added, “We have also partnered with organizations including the East Coast Greenway Alliance and The MillionMile Greenway to form a consortium of sorts to further our efforts as a group. By linking together organizations from up and down the coast, and inland Georgia, our combined momentum can better facilitate change.”