Public invited to share input on Songbird Trail through online survey

City News January 26, 2026

Freeborn County and the City of Albert Lea are inviting residents and visitors to take a short online survey by Feb. 13 about the proposed Songbird Trail to help guide future planning, improvements, and decision-making related to the trail. Access the survey by going to https://hdr.jotform.com/253483965770066.

The proposed 50-mile regional trail would support walking, biking and rolling by transforming a historic Union Pacific rail corridor into a safe, scenic and accessible route in southern Minnesota. It will extend from Albert Lea through Manchester and Hartland in Freeborn County and eventually connect to the Sakatah Singing Hills State Trail near Waterville, via New Richland and Waseca.

In Albert Lea, the Songbird Trail will connect to the Blazing Star State Trail in Albert Lea via bike lanes on Front Street.

Freeborn and Waseca Counties developed the Freeborn-Waseca Regional Trail Master Plan in 2018 to envision a trail connecting between the Blazing Star State Trail in Albert Lea to the Sakatah Singing Hills State Trail in Waterville.

In 2022-2023, Freeborn County and the City of Albert Lea pushed forward with a Trail Action Plan to further refine the vision for the trail within their jurisdictions. They are now in the process of designing 6.4 miles of that trail route and will begin construction on the first phase in 2026. 

The county and city are updating the master plan to meet requirements of the Greater Minnesota Regional Park and Trail Commission with the goal of applying for funding to build parts of the trail.

For more information about the Songbird Trail, including its purpose and features, visit the Freeborn County website at: www.co.freeborn.mn.us/597/Songbird-Trail.

Media contacts:
Freeborn County Engineer Philip Wacholz at 507-377-5188 or philip.wacholz@co.freeborn.mn.us
Albert Lea City Engineer Steven Jahnke at 507-377-4325 or sjahnke@ci.albertlea.mn.us

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