Katanning council gives nod to trails plan

In a bid to boost tourism, the Shire of Katanning council endorsed the Great Southern Regional Trails Master Plan at last week’s council meeting.

The master plan considers trails for hiking, cycling, paddling and mountain biking to link cultural and heritage sites across the region in the next decade.

The Great Southern Centre for Outdoor Recreation Excellence presented the plan to councillors during their February meeting.

As well as endorsing GSCORE’s plan, the Shire will seek a $5000 allocation from its 2020/2021 budget to support it.

One of the priority projects involving the Shire — estimated to be completed in one to two years — is the Great Southern Treasures Recreation Circuit.

According to Shire chief executive Julian Murphy, the trail will connect many significant local sites such as the Katanning Town Walk, the Police Pools Reserve, and Lake Ewlyamartup.

“There’s great potential here,” he said.

“As much as it is about attracting people, we already have people coming through, so it’s actually more about getting them to stay for a night or two longer.”

GSCORE’s Lenore Lyons said the goal was to have all councils endorse the plan this month so they could finalise the funding proposals for capital works.

“We want to ensure that our region can take advantage of any economic stimulus packages that are announced for the recovery phase,” she said.

“For this reason, we want to have as many shovel-ready projects as possible in the pipeline.”