Walking Trails – Already over halfway cleared, these trails will provide walking elementary students with a safe path to school.

You can see on the map that Gregory Blvd., which is a blind curve north of Clement Forest, only has bike lanes.  Myrtle Ave. and the other neighborhood streets do not have sidewalks.  Children walking to the public Harold L. Holliday Montessori Elementary School (across Jackson Ave. at the southeast corner of this map) from the residential areas north and west of this map do not have a safe walking option.  Equipping trail cameras will raise the degree of safety on the trail.

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Bonuses:  The walk within a natural environment before school will make classroom calm more achievable for those students who walk the trail, and the trail will be available to students at Holliday Montessori for nature walks during school hours.

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Daytime use:  The trail provides an excellent place for guided forest therapy, and walking visitors.

 

Outlook Point – From this vista down the hill, the effects of a nature-immersive experience are most immediately noticeable.

This 30-ft wide round leveled spot is meant to be a gathering space for visitors, and will serve as the first stop in the forest therapy experience.  From this point currently it is easy to see why removal of bush honeysuckle has been a top priority.

 

Amphitheater & Presentation Meadow – This spot reveals the land's potential for hosting events serving the neighborhood.

The topography and already-cleared spots in the forest allow for the development of an amphitheater area, to be constructed using the already-fallen timber in the forest.  Probable event capacity for the amphitheater will be under 50 seats. 

 

Bridges – Building these will assist with water management, visitor safety and biodiversity preservation.

Bridges will only be built with the dedicated support of an architect, or an engineer, or both.  The strolling bridge will enhance the experience of visitors to the Fox Hollow Trail, a vehicle access trail north of Clement Forest which connects to Lakeside Nature Center.

 

Fence – We comply with the adage, "Good fences make good neighbors," because our neighbors have asked for a fence.

Residents south of Clement Forest have requested that a divider of some sort be erected to assist with security measures.  ATVs have been reported riding at night along the trail, and residents are worried that their possessions will disappear with the new trail accessibility to their back yards.

 

Zoning – The area is zoned R-5, intended for pubic greenspace use.  We are following the city's plan for this space.

 

Water Flow - We place a priority on healthy water flow and healthy water habitat for water-dwelling life.

The Ravine:  The pointed topography lines show a ravine that runs from the southeast corner of Clement Forest to the creek in the northeast corner.  That waterway is only evident after a rainstorm.

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The Creek:  Fox Hollow Creek runs into the Little Blue River, which runs into the Missouri River.  The creek's water smelled of sewage when we acquired the property.  The city's stormwater system runs into this creek, but sewage also occasionally flowed into the creek.  We worked with the City of KCMO Water Department and learned about water habitats to encourage better stream health. It's not completely clean yet, but after about a year we sighted fish, frogs and turtles.

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