The Outdoor Recreation Roundtable is a coalition of trade associations, businesses, universities and state recreation offices working to expand Americans’ access to the outdoors. The organization includes representatives involved in every kind of recreation, from hiking and climbing to boating and skiing.
The organization recently released the “Trail Map for Rural Development in America.” It’s a guide to help federal, state, local, tribal and philanthropic leaders strengthen and create outdoor recreation opportunities in rural areas that improve locals’ quality of life.
Vice President of Programs Chris Perkins said the guide was created in response to the recreation boom spurred by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Everyone knows the story of the first days of the COVID pandemic. All of us were a little concerned, confused and figuring out how to reorient our lives,” he said on KPCW’s “This Green Earth” July 22. “And it turns out that when millions and millions of Americans faced that same question, everyone made a similar decision to go outdoors.”
Perkins said participation data over the last few years show more Americans than ever are getting outdoors. Data also show Americans are moving to areas providing outdoor opportunities.
This is represented in Utah as well, Perkins said, through a 2021 Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute report on tech sector employees. The survey found 79% of workers queried rated outdoor recreation and access to the wilderness as the most important factor in their decision to move to the Beehive State. Further, 82% of Utah natives surveyed said outdoor recreation was the number one reason they moved back to the state.
“Our goal is to help communities tap into this fast-growing sector of the economy and benefit local communities first,” Perkins said.
The trail map identifies five key opportunities: education, community vision, financing and implementation, resilience and innovation.
Perkins said sustainability is the most important thing for communities to consider when developing outdoor recreation opportunities. That’s because planning for wildlife and historic preservation can prevent problems down the road.
Perkins said it’s also important to invest in the long-term health of recreational areas and plan for maintenance and extreme weather.
The Beehive State, Perkins said, already features cities known for their outdoor recreation opportunities, like Park City and Moab.
But more rural Utah cities are capitalizing on themes laid out in the trail map. Those include the towns of Helper and Richfield, Perkins said.
In Helper, for example, the community worked with the Utah Division of Outdoor Recreation to conduct ecosystem restoration and beautification projects on the neglected Price River.
“Now you're seeing not just the river use picking up, but also the business development picking up,” Perkins said. “Now, all of a sudden you have a cafe and a brewery, and places are starting to pop out that really improve that quality of life and make a place more livable.”
He said Richfield has also been successful in developing mountain biking trails.
Perkins said the Outdoor Recreation Roundtable hopes more rural areas will use the trail map to support their communities.
