Scioto County Commissioners are looking to buy property for a paddle sport launch in Lucasville. They voted to allow commission chairman Scottie Powell to negotiate for the purchase of property in Lucasville for the Paddle Scioto River Project. Powell said, “We’ve been talking about kayak access for a while. Up until this point, we’ve been looking with ODOT. This other piece of property is closer to the water. It’ll cost less to develop.”
Powell said that another advantage is the property would be an asset belonging to the county vs. being ODOT’s property leased to the county.
“It’s a great location,” Powell said.
“It’s a great step forward,” Commissioner Bryan Davis said. He said there was a potential to save money with the purchase of the property and that the location was better. “I think better, in this case, means safer, too. I like the idea.”
Commissioner Cathy Coleman thanked Powell for his efforts in exploring different options for the county.
Powell said, “It’s one of our last great resources that we don’t have access to.” He said if the county is able to execute the plan in cooperation with Portsmouth’s plan for paddle facilities, the area will see an increase in tourism around water and paddle sports that could potentially rival Hocking County.
Powell said several different entities were exploring paddle launch points on the Ohio and Scioto Rivers as well as Brush Creek.
Davis said that with the work being done in Lucasville and Portsmouth combined with ramps in Piketon and Chillicothe that the dots were connecting for people to take all-day excursions or camping trips. “Wouldn’t it be great to someday do a TOSRV from Columbus to Portsmouth on Kayaks and Canoes?”
Commissioners voted unanimously to grant Powell the negotiating authority.
