CITY OF CEDAR RAPIDS BICYCLE AMBASSADORS 1st Place Best Use of Light in Holiday Parade
The City of Cedar Rapids Bicycle Advisory Committee and Bicycle Ambassadors won first place for Best Use of Light in the Cedar Rapids Holiday Delight Parade on Dec. 4 Thanks everyone for lighting up your bike! A large group of about 60 or so cyclists, with all types of bikes, holiday lights and décor, gathered at Coopacabana for some pre-parade cheer. We rolled slowly along the parade route to the delight of the parade watchers. A fun time was had by all and, afterward, many of us met for post-parade cheer at Parlor City, Al’s Blue Toad, Chrome Horse and New Shack Tavern. Last year we won first place for Best Decorated Vehicle. We are planning to have an entry in the parade next year also. Mediacom will air the holiday parade throughout the month of December on channel 22.

CITY OF CEDAR RAPIDS COMPREHENSIVE TRAILS PLAN APPROVAL PROCESS
One of the City of Cedar Rapids City Council’s new committees will be the Public Works Committee, made up of some City Council members, the Public Works Director, and others to be appointed, with the City Manager functioning as an advisor. The committee will oversee the annual Capital Improvement Project process, the status of the City’s trails plan, construction projects, the sidewalk plan and assessment policies. The Comprehensive Trails Plan is to be presented (date to be determined) to this committee, as the first step in the City Council process to approve the plan. The committee will decide if and when the plan will be presented to City Council for approval at a City Council meeting. For more information about the Comprehensive Trails Plan visit Shive-Hattery’s project tracker http://www.shivehattery.com/CRTrails/index.html

CEMAR TRAIL PHASE 1 AND PHASE 3 SCHEDULE 
Funding for CEMAR Trail Phase 1 is in the City of Cedar Rapids proposed FY12 budget. If City Council approves this item in the budget, the anticipated start of construction is Summer 2012. CEMAR Trail Phase 1 will begin at the Cedar Lake Loop Trail on Shaver Rd and end at Prairie Dr NE. CEMAR Trail Phase 2, beginning at Prairie Dr and ending at 29th St NE, was completed Fall 2010. Landscaping for Phase 2 will be done in Spring 2011. The City will pursue grant funding for CEMAR Trail Phase 3 in 2011, with possible construction in 2014. This will complete the 2.8 mile CEMAR Trail and connect downtown Cedar Rapids to Marion.

Upcoming Events:
New Year’s Eve Last Race of the Year 5k
GPS Fun in the Snow
Snowshoe Walk
Winter Native American Skills
7th Annual Winterfest
Indian Creek Nature Center 4th Annual Paddle Fest
Iowa Bicycle Summit & RAGBRAI Announcement

City of Cedar Rapids Bicycle Advisory Committee
www.facebook.com/bikecr