Downtown Howell will soon have a new interactive trail experience full of fun and interesting facts about the city.

Howell Main Street, Inc., in conjunction with the Howell Carnegie library, and Howell Area Parks and Recreation Committee have been awarded a Play Everywhere Challenge grant from the Ralph C. Wilson Jr. Foundation and KaBOOM! Howell Main Street C.O.O. Cathleen Edgerly said this grant will fund the upcoming Howell Tails Trail, which will encourage kids and families to come downtown and enjoy the city, while also learning a little bit about it. It will start just east of the city-owned Depot parking lot, and wind down to City Park, where visitors can find lots of play opportunities including a public lake, beach access, walking paths, volleyball, and playgrounds.

The Tails Trail will be unique, in that the city is working with a developer to create a smartphone app that will work in way that Edgerly compared loosely to the mobile game, Pokemon Go. As trail walkers traverse the path, the app will ping their phone, offering historical photos, folklore, and interesting facts about the area.

Kate Litwin of Howell Main Street said that they heard from a number of residents over the past couple of years who have requested more youth-based activities downtown, and believes this project will help connect the generations. Work on the Howell Tails Trail will begin this fall, and is expected to be completed by June of next year. (MK)