Pine River Trails Project
Work has begun on the new Mountain Bike Trail
Southwest Partners
Mission : To create a healthy forward thinking culture for attracting, retaining and nurturing our residents and their dreams in Southwest Wisconsin.
This project as an effort of Southwest Partners is to make opportunities in our community to utilize our natural resources to meet the current and future needs of our residents, so they can stay active and engaged at all ages. Southwest partners is a cooperative non-profit group that recently assisted in the application for a Federal/ State Grant to be used in the creation of multi-use trails for mountain biking, hiking, cross country skiing and snowshoeing. We will be able to further enhance our existing trails, safely connecting neighborhoods, and will install educational signage along the way to complete the experience. Camping locations will be developed in select park areas and all of our canoe/kayak landings will be improved. Select landings will be made handicap accessible along the Pine River in Richland County to provide opportunity to all residents
For more information visit: www.southwestpartners.org
A Message from our President:
Just Beginning
Mike Breininger
Southwest Partners President
Creating opportunities for people to work and live healthy and safe lives, creating a culture of looking forward and believing we can accomplish what we set out to do, and creating an environment for young people to be able to make a good choice to stay in our area, are some of the creative desires of Southwest Partners (SWP). SWP is a community building grass roots group that is working hard to turn our region of Southwest Wisconsin into a place of opportunity and growth. SWP has partners throughout the Richland County area but also in neighboring counties. Riverdale Schools and Scot Industries in Grant County, Metco Company and Hillsboro Schools in Vernon County, Vernon County Memorial Hospital, Bethel Healthcare and Retirement as well as Kickapoo Schools in western Vernon County, Lowe Manufacturing in northwestern Richland County, Seats, Inc. in Richland Center and Sauk County, to name just a few of the dynamic partners of SWP that are changing our region.
In the past few years, the passionate people of SWP have created the Career Education Cooperative, a cooperative effort of schools, businesses and community folks to train young people in youth apprenticeships, give them access to college credits while they are still in high school, and teach them the value of the community in which they were raised. SWP also led the way in the development of the Pine River Trails Project. Partnering with many invested people, businesses, associations, and government entities, the Pine River corridor now offers exceptional kayaking, canoeing, tubing, hiking, biking, mountain biking, snowshoeing, camping, and cross-country skiing. SWP also worked with landowners, schools, and energetic citizens, in an effort to create “safe routes” for students to bike or walk to outlying schools and workers to bike and walk to their places of work. The grant application to fund part of the project failed but SWP has not given up on the project. More to come in the future.
SWP is now in the creative process of starting a new type of regional development of economies and communities that work with businesses, entrepreneurs, government, and community folks to produce a vibrant economic environment. The Partners are also laying groundwork to stimulate growth and sustainability through housing, entrepreneurship, arts and restaurants, recreational opportunities with an overall expectation of growth and success. Partnering with citizens we are creating “communities of choice” in this region of the State.
SWP Foundation is an idea that would allow people to contribute to something that will change people’s lives for generations to come. SWP Foundation will be about creating opportunities and growth in the region with gifts and endowments that will allow for the seed capital and expertise needed to assist start-ups or support people and businesses that are wanting to expand or increase their presence in the region. The foundational relationships for this effort are underway and the effort is expected to launch in 2017.
Hundreds of people have put in countless hours creating this new culture and way of thinking that will propel the Southwest region of Wisconsin into one of the best places to live and thrive. Join the cause in creating a healthy forward thinking culture for attracting, retaining, and nurturing people and their dreams in our area. http://www.southwestpartners.org/
Other Southwest Partners Area projects and intitives;
Southwest Partners created the CEC,(Career Education Cooperative) which is a collaborative effort between five school districts and many manufacturing businesses in our community that will allow high schoolers the opportunity to work and gain college and vocational credits while attending high school.
For more information visit: http://www.careereducationcoop.com
