Resident suggests using utility work shoulder for low‑cost Diamond Point bike connection

A Clallam County resident told the Trails Advisory Committee that utility-burial work along Diamond Point Road has created cleared shoulders that could provide a low‑cost place for a bike lane or trail connecting the Diamond Point neighborhood to the Olympic Discovery Trail (ODT) trailhead near U.S. 101.
Sarah Tetrault, who said she works on contract as a relationship manager with the Peninsula Trails Coalition but was speaking at the meeting as a Clallam County resident, described the cleared strip that runs along part of Diamond Point Road and suggested the county explore whether the cleared area could be adopted as a bike lane or trail connection.
Tetrault asked the committee to consider the idea and, when asked by committee leadership, said she would attend the September meeting to outline the concept in greater detail and share the contacts she has at the state parks office. County staff noted that the work to bury utilities is happening in the county right-of-way and that any formal trail proposal would need to be considered against the county’s 6‑year Transportation Improvement Program; staff also said the county currently has no funding programmed for a new Diamond Point trail so it would appear as an unfunded project unless partners or grants are identified.
Direction/next steps: the committee agreed to place the Diamond Point connection concept on the September agenda and to invite state parks staff to the discussion about whether the cleared shoulders could be part of a connected route to the ODT trailhead.
Formal action: none; the committee recorded the public suggestion and requested a future agenda item.