An announcement was made earlier this week that Missouri Southern State University and the city of Joplin will build a trail that will link the university campus with Northpark Mall.
The 2,000-foot-long trail — to be paved with asphalt to accommodate both foot and bicycle traffic — will be built between the MSSU soccer fields and the parking lot of the Hollywood Theaters Northstar 14. It will include a pedestrian bridge over Turkey Creek.
The trail is long overdue. In fact, we’re surprised that mall management didn’t proceed with it long ago. Certainly, it will be a direct route now for many mall customers — namely university students.
But the trail represents more than a geographic connection. It is another step toward drawing MSSU into the Joplin community.
Construction of the trail won’t begin until late this year. We would hope it will ease some of the traffic congestion on and around mall property. It also will offer tremendous convenience and greater safety for about 700 students who live on campus.
Then, of course, there’s the health and environmental benefits of riding a bike or walking. Once the mall trail is complete, the city plans to begin the next phase of the project. The objective is connecting the university to downtown Joplin through the city’s trails system.
Under design is a section of the trail that would extend from North Florida Avenue to Range Line Road along Newman Road. Next will be an extension along Newman Road to the campus.
We give high praise to these trail projects and the people who use them. It is an excellent means of alternative transportation — or for some their only transportation.
Sometimes getting to your destination on the power of your own two feet is an excellent way to arrive.
Opinion
Related Photos
Discussion
Our View: Walking the walk
- Opinion
-
-
Our View: Connecting the town
Well before the 2011 tornado, Joplin had a problem with “connectivity.” That’s right. The flow of traffic — whether it be cars, pedestrians or bicyclists — has been a sore spot with us for years.
-
Other Views: Debt of honor
In Afghanistan, the Taliban have promised to kill Afghans who worked for the Americans and their families. In Iraq, similar threats were made by radical Islamic insurgents.
-
Your View: Bold leadership needed
Dear City Council Members, Let me first thank you for your service to our community.
-
Carol Stark: Dad took us on ‘travels’ that lasted a lifetime
This isn’t the column I had planned on writing, but it’s the one that keeps running through my mind. And so does this question: How do I cope on my first Father’s Day without my dad?
-
Herb Van Fleet, guest columnist: Big Brother is always watching and listening
Sen. Church made that statement 38 years ago. He chaired a committee that was formed to develop legislation to rein in the CIA, FBI, NSA and other intelligence agencies, which had been operating outside the bounds of the law, including the Constitution.
-
Geoff Caldwell, guest columnist: Jury still out on whistle-blower’s actions
Whether you see Edward Snowden as a hero, a traitor or something in between, there is no denying that the admitted “leaker” has opened up an industrial-size can of National Security Agency worms.
-
Trish Patton, guest columnist: Downtown group needs stakeholders' support
On Tuesday the Downtown Joplin Alliance (DJA) tabled the Community Improvement District (CID) initiative.
-
Our View: Earning a new badge
The Girl Scouts of the Missouri Heartland made a good decision Friday when it voted to give the community until November to develop a long-term plan to keep Camp Mintahama open.
-
Other Views: Stop farm bill gridlock
With a hopeful sound of gridlock cracking, U.S. House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, said Wednesday that he will vote for the House farm bill even though he has “concerns.” He reasons that “doing nothing means we get no changes in the nutrition programs.”
-
Marta Mossburg, columnist: Liberalism worldview doesn't make sense
The high priests of liberalism must be tossing and turning in their organic cotton bedding and downing more small-batch artisan whisky each night trying to cope with the abject failure of their cause
- More Opinion Headlines
-
Hoffa Mystery Still Fascinates After 4 Decades
Raw: 1 Dead in Shooting at Mo. Apartment Complex
Raw: Huge Fire Near Yosemite National Park
Raw: Obama Arrives in Berlin
3 Charged in Ohio With Enslaving Mom, Daughter
Obama Seeks G-8 Support on Syria
Raw: Volcano Erupts Near Mexico City
Kid Couture: Spending Big Bucks on Babies
Suicide Bombs Target Baghdad Mosque, Killing 29
Military Plans to Put Women in Combat Jobs
Solar Power Chargers in NYC Parks
Civil Rights Groups Sue NYPD Over Muslim Spying
Raw: First Lady, Daughters Enjoy Irish Sights
RAW: NSA Director Says 50 Plots Foiled
Boeing, Airbus Battle for Sales Supremacy
