University of Colorado Colorado Springs
IN-1: Innovation 1

The UCCS 2012 Campus Master Plan includes the goal to preserve a sense of place and develop the campus in a responsible & sustainable way. Furthermore, the 2012-2020 Strategic Plan identifies education enhanced by wellness through recreation as a key component of the UCCS campus experience. In 2014, in support of these strategic planning documents, UCCS published the Recreational Trails Micro Master Plan, an ancillary document to our 2012 Campus Master Plan, to provide "a unique asset for student recruitment, and a means for physically engaging students and faculty with the campus' stunning natural landscape resource while contributing to their health and wellness." The trail system will be open to the campus and the community for non-motorized and appropriate multi-use recreation and transportation.. The trails system supports the campus' valuable natural and cultural resources that are critical to successfully developing UCCS for future generations. Outdoor recreation and individual wellness are core commitments for the campus community. Trails are a crucial part of our heritage, our transportation network and our commitment to sustainability and social trails degrade the natural capital of the campus. The goals of this initiative are: • Create a world-class trail system engaging the unique natural landscape and contributing to UCCS's sense of place, • Protect the natural environment by minimizing impacts to the local fauna, flora, and soils while providing a robust trail system for recreation and transportation, • Accommodate campus development by creating a trail system that connects and unifies campus destinations, • Integrate the UCCS trail system with adjacent public trails, parks and open spaces, as well as housing, retail and employment centers, and • Recommend campus-wide initiatives to further the University goals of sustainability, education, and holistic health and wellness. The UCCS Recreational Trails Micro-Master Plan envisions the campus as an area that offers all people the opportunity to experience this unique and beautiful place. The focus is on providing access through a variety of multi-use trails and the support facilities needed to serve them. Trails throughout the site are planned to accommodate a wide range of abilities and interests, and to offer a variety of experiences that will make multiple visits engaging, informative and interesting. The plan also allows for related trailside gathering areas, interpretive sites, trails with additional attributes for sight impaired interpretation and designation of themed routes (e.g. curriculum based geology, biology, wellness, etc. and a cross country venue). Trailheads have also been identified at key connections to the system. The Recreational Trails Micro-Master Plan is a specific yet flexible roadmap that will guide creation and maintenance of a sustainable trail system for the UCCS campus community.