Thurston County intends to relinquish its ownership of 1.6 miles of the Yelm-Rainier-Tenino Trail within the limits of Yelm’s urban growth area.
Five parcels along state Route 507 totaling about 1.6 miles will be transferred to the City of Yelm for continued maintenance and improvements.
“You’ve got parts of this trail that go through the urban growth area and the City of Yelm, and they have a better ability, was the thought, to do maintenance on that portion that’s right there inside of their community,” Thurston County Commissioner Tye Menser said during a Board of County Commissioners meeting on Dec. 2.
Thurston County Public Works got approval from the Thurston County Board of County Commissioners during that meeting to submit a letter of intent for the proposed transfer of ownership.
Thurston County initially acquired the parcels as part of a recreation and conservation grant.
This letter initiates the process to amend the original agreement to add the City of Yelm as a “secondary sponsor,” which will allow the transfer of ownership of the 1.6-mile trail portion, while the county will retain ownership and maintain all other portions of the Yelm-Rainier-Tenino Trail.
The Board of County Commissioners will be asked to sign the amended agreement sometime in the future.
The City of Yelm and Thurston County have been working on this transfer of ownership “for quite a while,” Menser said.
The City of Yelm is currently working on its end of the proposal.
“We think it’s going to benefit the community, ultimately,” Menser said.
