Lehighton remains in the hunt for volunteers to help form a steering committee in its quest to be designated as a “trail town.”

About two dozen people — consisting of members of the Delaware & Lehigh National Heritage Corridor, the Lehighton Downtown Initiative and the borough — met Thursday at the Lehighton Municipal Building.

The purpose of the meeting was to establish a steering committee for the process, develop goals and gather information, according to Brian Greene, trail programs manager for the Delaware & Lehigh National Heritage Corridor.

Attendees discussed the next steps for the borough working toward a trail town designation through the D&L trail town process.

“The idea is to help our communities along the D&L Trail become trail-friendly, something that they both invest in and take care of, but also benefit from,” Greene said.

Greene said the D&L will guide them through the process with ideas on things they can do to support their trails, as well as improvements they can make to improve the overall quality of life.

“We really view trails as a win-win situation; they’re great for local residents, the economy, tourism,” he said. “We think they are a no-brainer for investing in; a real economic engine to allow tourists and residents to explore, get out and connect to the environment and connect to the history.”

Greene said they talked about making the borough a trail-friendly community.

“It’s about creating a welcoming atmosphere using this infrastructure that’s attracting people, and getting people to come and see the great things that Lehighton has to offer,” he said. “It’s not about the trail, it’s about the amenities that are associated with the trail.”

Greene said Lehighton has a lot of these parts, citing the Lehigh River Trail, D&L Trail, the Lehighton Outdoor Center — Home of Jim Thorpe River Adventures and Northeast PA Kayak School, the downtown park, shops and restaurants.

“A lot of the pieces are already there,” he said. “It’s about polishing them up, packaging them in a way and promoting so that people know about it.”

Greene said the meeting was a starting point, and that the next step is for the steering committee to get together, walk around town, walk around the trails, and get ideas from the local community.

Jared McEvoy, president of the LDI, said the group is still in the process of creating a steering committee.

“Ultimately, it boils down to the type of dedication we’re able to get from the people who are interested in helping,” McEvoy said.

McEvoy said he believes that by becoming a trail town, the borough would become even more of a destination area and be able to compete with neighboring towns such as Jim Thorpe and Palmerton.

“We’ve been blessed with a beautiful river front, we have the trail, outdoor center,” he said. “In the downtown we have a blank canvas with about 10 storefronts vacant, property values are low. Right now is the time to buy.”

However, McEvoy noted it’s all part of a process.

“We need about eight to 10 dedicated people who really believe in our town and believe in this process, and get them to commit a year of their time,” he said. “The opportunity is here for people to come in and try to take advantage of this.”

McEvoy said anyone interested in serving on the steering committee may check out the LDI’s Facebook page, or email him at jaredmcevoy@gmail.com.