2010 Greenways and Trails Awards

Parks & Trails New York held our 2010 Community Trail and Greenway Award Ceremony on Tuesday, June 8 at the Legislative Office Building in Albany.

Volunteer Service Award - Elisa Zazzera and Joe Kozlowski for the Friends of the Old Croton Aqueduct Trail State Park in Yonkers

Public Leadership Award - Dorothy Lewandowski and Velma Segars for the New York City Water Trail

Corporate Partnership Award - Eastern Mountain Sports, Mohawk Commons Store for the Mohawk-Hudson Bike-Hike Trail section of the Erie Canalway Trail in the City of Schenectady. (Accepting on behalf of the Mohawk Commons store is Eastern Mountain Sports employee Matt Sims)

Healthy Trails, Healthy People Award - Mark Bowers and Scott Reigle for the Greater Binghamton Greenway Project/Binghamton River Trail 

Outside the Box Award - Fred Schaeffer for the Walkway over the Hudson State Historic Park in Poughkeepsie (Fred is pictured here with Assemblyman Frank Skartados, who nominted Fred for the award and helped PTNY host the event).

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We presented two Special Recognition Awards to Senator David Valesky (Kiki Karamintzas of the senator's staff is pictured here) and Assemblyman William Magee for their generous support for the creation and expansion of the Chittenango Creek Walk and Neighborhood Trail, Chenango Towpath Trail, and Susquehanna Greenway.

A special thanks to Assemblyman Frank Skartados and his staff - their hospitality helped make the event possible, and to Assemblyman Jack McEneny who drafted a Resolution proclaiming June 5, 2010 as National Trails Day in the state of New York.

2007 Greenway and Trail Awards

Volunteer Service Award - Lisa Dyslin for the Northern Forest Canoe Trail
Lisa Dyslin of Wilmington was recognized for her strong leadership and long-standing commitment to visioning, planning, promotion, public outreach, partnership building, fundraising, construction, and maintenance on behalf of the Northern Forest Canoe Trail, a 740-mile water trail tracing historic Native American travel routes across New York, Vermont, Québec, New Hampshire, and Maine.  In nominating Lisa, the Northern Forest Canoe Trail Board stated, “Lisa Dyslin is the kind of volunteer that every trail organization dreams of finding.  She is capable, flexible, reliable, and gives credit for the success of projects to every participant but herself.”

Public Leadership Award - Dutchess County Executive William Steinhaus
County Executive William Steinhaus was recognized for his ability to build consensus, develop alliances, and create the necessary critical mass to build trails that have had a profound impact on the quality of life within Dutchess county.  The County Executive has been a strong champion for trails throughout his 16-year career, especially two major rail trail projects -- the 11-mile Harlem Valley Rail Trail between Wassaic and Millerton which will soon be extended eight miles north from Millerton to Columbia County and the 12-mile Dutchess County Rail Trail soon to be built between Hopewell Junction and Poughkeepsie.

Corporate Partnership Award - Town of Penfield Recreation Department and Wegmans
The Monroe County Town of Penfield’s Recreation Department and Wegmans Supermarkets received the Corporate Partnership Award for the creation and promotion of the innovative “Wegmans Passport to Family Wellness” program.  More than 1500 Penfield residents proceeded to hike the town’s 13 different trails and collect unique rubbings for their Passport from special trail markers at each trail, making them eligible for a $100 Wegmans gift card or a free catered party at the town’s new recreation facility. 

Healthy Trails, Healthy People Award - Town of Clifton Park for the Northern Loop Trail System
Parks & Trails New York honored the Saratoga County Town of Clifton Park’s Open Space, Trails, and Riverfront Committee with its Healthy Trails, Healthy People Award for incorporating a vision of a comprehensive trails network in its plans for town development and for implementing the vision of a Northern Loop Trail steadily and creatively, so that thousands of local residents can now walk and bike throughout the town on safe and beautiful local trails.

Outside the Box Award - City of Rochester, Genesee Riverway Trail
The City of Rochester received the Outside the Box Award for the dedication, commitment, and focus of a city team that for more than 25 years has been dedicated to creating an 18-mile riverside trail from the shore of Lake Ontario to the heart of downtown and south to the Erie Canalway Trail.  Recently, the City thought outside the box to address the design and environmental challenges posed by steep gorges, wetlands, mature trees, and natural view sheds to complete a 2/3-mile section of trail on a boardwalk built within the Genesee River.

2005 Greenway and Community Trail Awards

Volunteer Service Award - Peter Henry, Macedon Trails Committee
Peter Henry of Macedon was selected for the Volunteer Service Award in recognition of his strong leadership and exemplary and significant contributions to planning, construction, maintenance, and promotion of trails in the Town of Macedon. It was 1992, at a time when the trails movement was just beginning, when Peter Henry first formed a Trails Committee in the Town of Macedon in Wayne County. In the ensuing 13 years, Pete has contributed countless hours to leading a dedicated group of volunteers that has worked with town officials and private landowners to develop, maintain, and promote trails and Erie Canal resources within the town. Under Pete's leadership there have been many accomplishments:

• construction of a loop trail to historic Erie Canal Lock #60
• development of the Stone Street Trail along the old Erie Canal
• restoration of the Aldrich Change Bridge , the only known surviving canal change bridge still in existence
• establishment and coordination of an Adopt-a-Trail program for the Erie Canalway Trail and other trails within the town
• publication of Macedon's Canal Heritage brochure, and
• ongoing planning for future trails within the town.

Healthy Trails, Healthy People Award - David Wright, Victor Hiking Trails
David Wright of Victor received the Healthy Trails, Healthy People Award for improving universal access to trails, involvement of persons with disabilities in trails planning in the Town of Victor , commitment to promotion of trail use for persons of all ages and abilities. According to the members of Victor Hiking Trails, Inc., “Dave Wright's consideration of trails accessibility goes beyond acknowledgement that compliance is a good idea. He goes to the next level making sure that potential users with disabilities are involved early in the planning process.” Under Dave's leadership, Victor Hiking Trails has been working closely with the Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired to include information in Braille for interpretive signs within Fishers Park, Eagle Scouts have built bridges to facilitate trail accessibility, and trail use is actively promoted within the town in conjunction with local businesses, the town parks and recreation department, and the Victor Local Development Corporation.

Public Leadership Award - Sue Poelvoorde, New York State Office
of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, Finger Lakes Region
Sue A. Poelvoorde, Natural Resources Planner in the New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation Finger Lakes Region was selected for the Public Leadership Award to recognize her significant and sustained contributions in support of planning, design, construction, management, promotion, and public involvement for the Catharine Valley Trail, a 15-mile multi-use trail between Watkins Glen and Horseheads. When the Finger Lakes Region State Parks agreed to own, build, and maintain the Catharine Valley Trail, it was Sue Poelvoorde who took on the challenge of this complex project. With persistence, great attention to detail, and a high level of enthusiasm, Sue led the efforts to negotiate with landowners for property acquisition, work with a consultant to develop a trail master plan, and coordinate with local governments and state agencies to establish land-use agreements and undertake trail design and construction. Sue also put together ribbon cutting ceremonies to promote public awareness of the trail, developed several promotional and educational brochures, edited and designed the quarterly Catharine Valley Trail Newsletter, and created interpretive panels highlighting the trail's natural and cultural “stories.”

Corporate Partnership Award - Teri Barr, Hudson Valley Outfitters, Cold Spring
Teri Barr and Hudson Valley Outfitters of Cold Spring received the Corporate Partnership Award for their contributions to the promotion and development of the Hudson River Greenway Water Trail. According to Carmella A. Mantello, Executive Director of the Hudson River Valley Greenway, “Teri supports the development and use of both the Greenway's water and land trail programs and is renowned for her charity in her community. Teri donated the services of two guides and a transport van for the entire inaugural Great Hudson River Paddle in 2001. She has continued to support the Great Hudson River Paddle in all subsequent years by donating kayaks, breakfast at the Cold Spring stop, and gifts for paddlers. For the past three years she has made her entire rental fleet available for a roundtrip paddle between the Village of Cold Spring and Little Stony Point. Hudson Valley Outfitters has also hosted a series of talks promoting trails and regional non-profit groups from its second store in Beacon and has donated funds to update the Hudson River Water Trail Association guidebook.”  

Outside the Box Award - Bronx River Alliance , New York City
The Bronx River Alliance was selected for the Outside the Box Award because of the multiple and unique partnerships, creative programming, and significant resources that the organization has assembled to develop and promote the Bronx River Greenway in New York City. When complete the Bronx River Greenway will be an eight-mile bicycle pedestrian trail, built on upgraded pathways within existing parks and underutilized riverfront land that provides access to a reclaimed Bronx River. The Bronx River Alliance, a unique partnership whose 70-plus members include community-based organizations, local businesses, public agencies, schools, and institutions, has been instrumental in the Greenway's planning design, and implementation and has secured more than $90 million in City, State, and Federal funding for the Greenway and River restoration. In making the nomination, Joan Byron of the Sustainability and Environmental Justice Initiative commented on the importance of the Alliance 's efforts, “The creation of new waterfront parks in the South Bronx is among the Greenway's most important benefits. The Bronx River Greenway will be a unique resource for recreation, transportation, economic development, and spiritual and ecological renewal. It will connect communities with the River, with each other, and with the larger City and region, and create opportunities for local entrepreneurship and living-wage jobs for local residents.”

29 Elk Street w Albany, NY 12207 w (ph) 518-434-1583 w (fax) 518-427-0067 w ptny@ptny.org
Parks & Trails New York is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization as defined by the IRS.