Henry County Approved the Trails Wayfinding and Signs Plan

Henry County completed a trails plan in 2022. Now, they have a trails wayfinding and signs plan to go alongside it. The county approved the signs plan in June 2024.

The trails wayfinding plan provides specifications to construct future trails signs. This includes their look, dimensions, color palette and materials.

Henry County Trails Wayfinding Plan

Henry County adopted its trail plan in 2022. The plan identifies 87 projects across the county to improve pedestrian connectivity. The projects include both greenways and side paths. The full plan is on the county website (PDF link – 142 pages). A trails network map is also available.

The trails plan recommended Henry County complete a wayfinding plan next. The county hired Page Southerland Page, Inc. in September 2023 for the trails wayfinding plan. The plan cost was $40,500.

Page presented their draft plan to the county commissioners on June 11, 2024. The chosen design palette uses dark red, orange and green colors on natural wood finish signage. Some types of signs covered in the plan include the following:

• primary and secondary trailhead,
• trail etiquette and mile markers,
• directional and safety message signs, and
• interpretive / informative signs.

Following the presentation, county commissioners unanimously approved the signs plan. The presentation can be viewed in its entirety here (PDF link – 40 pages).

Next Steps

The county’s consultant, Page, will now prepare the final plan materials. This will include construction specifications to support each sign type. They anticipate delivering these documents to the county by the end of summer. A future contractor can follow the plans when building a trail for Henry County.

The county identified three model corridors during the 2022 trails plan. They are Fairview Road, Camp Creek Greenway in McDonough, and Towaliga River Greenway in Hampton. This spring, the county sought federal funds for design work on Camp Creek. They should learn this fall whether they receive the funding.

Finally, the county built a portion of the Panola Mountain Greenway Trail in 2020. Phase 1 connected Panola Mountain State Park and Austin Road Middle School. The county approved construction for phase 1B, linking the middle school and Fairview Library, in August 2023. The county will need to install signage along this trail, reflecting the new wayfinding plan, at a date to be determined.

Featured image shows trails signage in the Henry County Trails Wayfinding Plan. Henry County photo.