MIDLAND, Texas — On March 20, the Metropolitan Planning Organization shared its recent award for Planning Excellence received earlier that month from the Texas Recreation and Parks Society. The award was given to the MPO for its recently completed work on the Wildcatters Trail, a bicycle and pedestrian corridor connecting the cities of Midland and Odessa.
The trail would run east to west and parallel to SH 191 from the Scharbauer Sports Complex to the UTPB Midland Campus, it then would turn southward and parallel to FM 1788 to north of Business 20 where it would turn west toward the main UTPB campus. The entire trail length is about nineteen miles.
In January 2023, the cities of Midland and Odessa both applied for TxDOT grants funds to begin construction on the westernmost and easternmost portions of the trail. UTPB also applied for grant funds to tie onto the western portion of the trail and to serve the university’s campus.
Both Midland Mayor Lori Blong and UTPB President Dr. Sandra Woodley were present at the Policy Board meeting to comment on the work effort and the importance of the trail in the communities.
Mayor Blong stated “As co-chair of the Wildcatter Trail Committee, I am thankful for the opportunity to work with other leaders to advance this good project. The Wildcatter Trail initiative has been a great example of collaboration and partnership between the communities of Midland and Odessa, as well as with our regional MPO and UTPB. We are all so proud of the trail design, the award, and the continued work toward funding and completion of the Wildcatter Trail. This award marks a great milestone of accomplishment and brings us closer to the reality of a family-friendly trail of connectivity between Midland and Odessa.”
Dr. Woodley also commented “I am so proud of the collective efforts of so many to move this dream forward. This project is an important economic development initiative. These kinds of amenities will help us retain the best and brightest in our community and workforce and can improve the quality of all of our lives. The University is all in.”