Pioneering Healthier Communities – Marion (PHC) and the City of Marion are holding a ribbon cutting ceremony and community ride to celebrate the newly revamped recreational bike route within the city. The ceremony is planned for Sunday, June 23, 2013 at 1:00pm at McKinley Park.
A community ride will follow the ribbon cutting ceremony. Riders will start in small groups, in fifteen minute increments. Maps will be provided with turnarounds marked for three and five miles.
A bike route had existed previously within the City of Marion, but had all but disappeared in recent years due to neglect. Only a few bike signs remained when several groups came together to bring back and improve the route. The revamped bike route was an effort of PHC, City of Marion, Heart of Ohio Tailwinds Bicycle Club, and Marion City / County Regional Planning Commission.
The bike route is circular and includes many Marion neighborhoods. Good pick-up points are:
- McKinley Park heading east towards the Boulevard or west Thew Avenue
- Marion Catholic High School heading north on Forest Lawn or south on Forest Lawn and then west on Bexley
- Fairground Street and Oak head west on Fairground or south on Oak
- Bennett and Clinton heading east on Bennett or south on Clinton
Click on the image above to view a map of the bike route.
PHC is a local grassroots coalition working to help Marion become an amazing place to live by promoting healthy eating and physical activity in schools and neighborhoods throughout the area communities.
The bike route is part of PHC’s community action plan to increase opportunities for physical activity and healthy eating in order to reduce childhood obesity in Marion. According to the 2012 Marion Public Health study, 45% of Marion County third, fifth and ninth graders are overweight or obese.
PHC’s past work includes leading advocacy efforts with the Ohio Department of Transportation to include bike lanes and additional sidewalks along the current Ohio 95 improvement project; working with three local school districts to adopt healthy celebration guidelines; and raising awareness of childhood obesity as an important issue in the community.
Marion Community Foundation provided funding for the bike route signage as part of a larger grant to PHC. Other PHC projects covered in the grant include:
- Community Garden at Christ Missionary Baptist Church
- “Shoe the Loop” walking routes in and around downtown Marion
- Physical activity incorporated into the Summer Feeding program for area youth
- Identify and make plans to assist a corner / convenience store in offering fresh fruits and vegetables
- Walk to School Day, October 2013, to encourage children to safely walk and bike to school
- Work with Marion healthcare providers to incorporate An Ounce of Prevention into their regular pediatric visits
Nucor Steel, Marion donated the sign poles for the bike route signs.
In addition to the MCF, funding and assistance is also provided to PHC by YMCA of the USA and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
Plans exist to add several “spurs” to the route to direct bike traffic to locations of interest including downtown, the Marion Public Library, the Ohio State Marion and Marion Technical College campus, and the Tall Grass Trail.
About Marion Online News
