Bicyclists traveling the width of the U.S. will soon have a new place to rest in Ash Grove.
The city has been a stopping point for years on the TransAmerica trail, which spans from Virginia to Oregon. It’s traveled by national and international bike tourists looking to see a unique side of the country. In the community around the trail Ash Grove has been a popular stopping point part way between stops in Marshfield and Pittsburgh, Kansas.
Ash Grove Mayor Caleb Smith said playing host to these travelers has become a unique part of the town and you never know who you’re going to meet.
“It's just kind of neat, it kind of brings back slowing down in life a little bit and getting to know people,” Smith explained, he gave one example: “last year with the election, one guy was a reporter from over in Europe, and he was just going from west coast to east coast, and he was noticing just how the views change as you move through the United States.” Cyclists are also often taking on the trail to raise money for nonprofit causes.
The only challenge is giving these visitors a place to rest for the night. They used to camp in the city’s park, then Ash Grove’s historic Barham House became a sort of guest house used by cyclists for years, but the multipurpose space is also used by the Ash Grove community at-large. Mayor Smith says the city has tried to compromise, they’ll soon be opening up another city owned property for cyclists to spend the night, the Carriage House on Main Street. He expects final touches on repairs and updates to the building to be done mid-April.
He said the house will fit six to ten cots, “it will have a kitchenette, it will have a workstation for the bicyclists, a bathroom, shower," and he added “it also gets them up there on Main Street by our local restaurants and the businesses up there.”
Smith said the city will use a keyless entry for the space and also has ambassadors who’ve volunteered to be points of contact and connection for tourists, freeing up staff from those responsibilities. In embracing biking, the city also hopes to engage further with the southwest Missouri bike community.
Smith said he’s trying to partner with local bike shops, they're “dressing up” the space with memorabilia and bike themed decor, and he said he is pushing for those cycle companies to host events and presentations at the house.
And Ash Grove is also working on a trail of its own.
Smith said it will be multimodal, meant for bikes as well as wheelchairs and others forms of transportation. It will go through the heart of town from the west side near Cub’s Lake, to the east. It will tie into the city park and two assisted living facilities.
Smith is excited about any opportunity to collaborate with the biking community in the area and welcomes anyone to reach out to his office in Ash Grove.