Advocacy Alert: Prince George's County budget forums for next fiscal year

Do you live and/or ride in Prince George’s County, Maryland? We need your help to make sure natural surface trails in the county are funded. 

The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC) will hold its 2025 Budget Forums to solicit comments on the M-NCPPC budget for planning, parks, and recreation in Prince George’s County for the next fiscal year, which begins July 1, 2026. 

There is an in-person budget forum happening on October 21, 7 p.m, at 6600 Kenilworth Avenue, Riverdale, MD 20737. Sign up here. 

Written comments will also be accepted until close of business, Tuesday, November 4, 2025, Comments may be addressed to Darryl Barnes, Chairman, Prince George’s County Planning Board and sent to PublicAffairs@ppd.mncppc.org. 

MORE is encouraging the mountain biking community to speak up for natural surface trails and ride opportunities in the county. Below is a list of talking points as well as a sample letter you can personalize for more impact. 

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TALKING POINTS 

Prince George’s has a critical gap in natural surface trail access 

• Prince George’s County Parks have less than 35 miles of natural surface trails suitable for mountain biking, limited to just three parks – Fairland, Cosca, and Jug Bay. 
• Also part of M-NCPPC, Montgomery County has 200+ miles, and Fairfax County offers 100+ miles across dozens of parks. This leaves Prince George’s County well behind neighboring jurisdictions in trail access and regional outdoor competitiveness. 
• While Prince George’s Park and Recreation planning documents note that the Department has met its goal of 100 miles of natural surface trails by 2040, existing trails do not serve the full population equitably (particularly in the northern and central regions) and include only limited opportunities for mountain bikes. 
• Prince George’s Parks and Recreation has taken the first big step toward improving and expanding its natural surface trail network by hiring dedicated staff to help build and maintain trails, but they need budget support for staff and equipment to make progress quickly and efficiently. 

Trails are low-cost, multi-use assets 

• Natural surface trails support hikers, runners, equestrians, and mountain bikers - broadening appeal and access. 
• Construction costs average $35,000 per mile, significantly lower than paved trails which often cost over $1 million per mile. 
• Mountain bikers have a proven track record of stewardship and volunteerism. Volunteers from the Mid-Atlantic Off-Road Enthusiasts (MORE), the local mountain bike club, clock in over 17,000 hours a year building and maintaining trails and running mountain biking events and programming. Volunteer work can help lower the cost of trail construction and maintenance, while energizing local stewards. 

  Natural surface trails are in high demand and deliver high community value 

• Trails (walking, hiking, and biking) are rated as the #1 recreation need by Prince George’s households. The Land Preservation, Park, and Recreation Plan notes that “resident surveys consistently identify trails as the top desired and used amenity among park patrons, and since the COVID-19 pandemic began, there has been an uptick in trail use and requests for new and improved trails has never been higher.” 
• Natural surface trails directly support County goals around health, equity, and access, as emphasized in the Formula 2040 and the Department's Trails Strategic Plan. 
• A robust trail network helps make Prince George’s an attractive and competitive place to live, visit, and invest. Trail users, especially cyclists, often spend money locally after their rides, boosting restaurants, breweries, cafes, and local services. 

Youth teams lack local access  

• Takoma Park Composite, a mountain bike team that's part of the Maryland Interscholastic Cycling League, has several student athletes who live in Prince George's County. Most of their practices take place in Northwest Branch Trail (in Montgomery County) and Fairland, locations requiring significant car travel. 
• The only other trail options in the county–Cosca, Jug Bay, and Rosaryville—are located to the east and south, far from population centers, especially youth in the northern and central areas. 

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SAMPLE LETTER

Please edit as you see fit

To: PublicAffairs@ppd.mncppc.org 
CC: ExecutiveDirector@more-mtb.org 

Dear Chairman Barnes, 

As a Prince George’s County resident and avid trail user, I’m requesting M-NCPPC to consider mountain biking and natural surface trails in its budget planning for the next fiscal year. 

Prince George’s has a critical gap in natural surface trail access. Prince George’s County parks have less than 40 miles of natural surface trails open to mountain bikes, limited to only three parks—Cosca Regional Park, Fairland Regional Park, and Jug Bay Natural Area. Meanwhile, Montgomery Parks, also a department of M-NCPPC, has over 200 miles of mountain biking trails. Across the river in Fairfax County, Virginia, there are over 100 miles open to mountain bikes across several parks. This leaves Prince George’s County behind neighboring jurisdictions in trail access and regional outdoor competitiveness. 

While Prince George’s Parks and Recreation planning documents note that the Department has met its goal of 100 miles of natural surface trails by 2040, existing trails do not serve the full population equitably, particularly in the northern and central area of the county and include only limited opportunities for mountain bikers. Prince George’s Parks and Recreation has taken the first big step toward improving and expanding its natural surface trail network by hiring dedicated staff to help build and maintain trails, but they need budget support for staff and equipment to make progress quickly and efficiently. 

Natural surface trails are low-cost, multi-use assets that support outdoor recreation demands of hikers, runners, equestrians, and mountain bikers. Natural surface trail construction costs an average of $35,000 per mile, which is significantly lower than paved trail which often costs over a million dollars per mile. Additionally, mountain bikers have a proven track record of stewardship and volunteerism. Volunteers from the Mid-Atlantic Off-Road Enthusiasts (MORE), the local mountain bike club, clock in over 17,000 hours building and maintaining natural surface trails and running mountain bike programming. Rest assured there is a strong base of Prince George’s mountain bikers already involved in trail work who are ready to put in volunteer hours to maintain trails in the county. 

Investing in natural surface trails is a cost-effective way to meet County goals around health, equity, and access, while encouraging residents to be trail volunteers and stewards. I strongly urge M-NCPPC to include natural surface trails in its budget planning for fiscal year 2026. 

Sincerely,
[name]
[town/city - if a PG County resident]