The city of Green River, located in Emery County, Utah, is in the final planning stages of an important public works project. They plan to build 50 miles of trails in and around the Green River for hiking, biking and horseback riding. Roughly 35 miles of trail will be on land, with the rest running directly through the river.
The city has partnered with Epicenter, a Green River-based nonprofit that seeks to “accentuate Green River’s rural pride and pioneering spirit.” Epicenter is primarily responsible for executing the project and enlisting necessary outside help.
Steph Crabtree and Dan Teed interned with Epicenter last summer as graduate students in the U’s College of Architecture. Among other things, they were responsible for finding and activating potential partner organizations, such as the Bureau of Land Management and the Boy Scouts of America. It was their idea to get the U involved in the trails project.
“We talked to a few of our professors at the U, started coordinating with Epicenter, and it all sort of came together,” Crabtree said.
Professors Mira Locher and Erin Carraher used the opportunity to create a group project for their first year architecture students. Professional architects Darin Mano and Heber Slabbert were brought on as additional instructors.
The U’s group projects began with an overnight camping trip to Green River. The 45 first-year students analyzed the land and chose the sites they were most interested in studying. They were then split into eight groups based on site preference.
Crabtree and Teed were responsible for locating potential project sites. Some, like the city’s museum, were in downtown Green River. Others were “in the middle of nowhere,” like a geyser along one of the projected trails.
“Every site we chose has a different and important meaning to the people of Green River,” Crabtree said.
Each student group was responsible for designing, building and implementing one “intervention” within their site. These appeared as benches, river platforms, sculptures and more. Mano said the students’ only constraints were to represent the project’s theme — “Moments of Pause.” The theme was chosen to encourage recreationists to pause and appreciate the beauty of the river and the land surrounding it.
Nick Carter, a student in architectural studies, said the project was “a lot of fun,” and a good experience overall.
“To physically build your designs, to see the fruits of your labors, is a lot more rewarding than on-paper architecture assignments,” Carter said.
Participant Aaron Cardenas called it a “terrible” experience and has since left the architecture program because of it. Cardenas said his group of five spent significant amounts of time and money on planning and building their benches, even spending a few nights on-site. But as they began implementing their project into the site, the owner of the land ordered the students to leave and to take their project with them. Cardenas blames the person in charge of zoning and land appropriation for “not doing their job.”
“I entered the architecture program because I wanted to help people and to help communities,” Cardenas said. “It turns out I’m not allowed to.”
Cardenas said this incident is not isolated but a reflection on the entire College of Architecture. He believes the college’s Design Build Bluff program, which allows students to design homes for Navajo reservations, does more harm for the Navajo communities than good.
“The professors think they know what’s best for the Navajo people, and they just don’t,” he said.
Cardenas is currently exploring new major options in political science or psychology.
Despite Cardenas’s experience, Teed is pleased with the project’s overall outcome.
“The students helped build excitement and momentum for the [city’s] project,” Teed said. “They made the possibility of trails a reality for Green River residents.”
Bringing that possibility to life will take plenty of work, he said. The city is currently finishing the first year of what Epicenter co-director Jack Forinash expects to be a three- to five-year project. Much of the project’s speed will be determined by how quickly Epicenter can obtain funding.
“We’re hoping to attract more tourism with these trails, so the city is investing a lot of its economic development money, but that has to be supplemented,” Forinash said.
Currently, funding comes from the city of Green River and the Volunteer Trails Committee. The National Parks Service has not provided a cash grant but does pay the salary of Marcy DeMillion, a NPS employee assigned to the project.
Forinash said the program is currently seeking funding from government agencies and private donors. He is optimistic about their prospects and about the future of the project.
“There’s a lot of momentum,” Forinash said. “It’s an exciting time in the community.”
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