Our Team
Meet Our Team
Wade Johnston, AICP - Executive Director
An avid commuter cyclist and outdoor enthusiast, Wade is working to change people's everyday interaction with the built environment and the outdoors in Greater Cincinnati. Under Wade's leadership, Tri-State Trails has grown from a grassroots coalition to the leading advocacy organization for active transportation issues in the Tri-State region. One of Tri-State Trails’ noteworthy accomplishments has been galvanizing a diverse public-private partnership for the CROWN Capital Campaign, which has raised $11 million in public funds and $10 million in private funds to build out a 34-mile urban trail loop around Cincinnati. Wade earned his Bachelor of Urban Planning from the University of Cincinnati's College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning with a focus on multi-modal transportation, Geographic Information Science, and public relations. Wade is an active member of the American Planning Association and the American Institute of Certified Planners. He serves on the boards of the Ohio to Erie Trail, Queen City Bike, and the Mt. Washington Community Council.
Rachel Culley - GIS Analyst & Planner
Rachel is passionate about the power active transportation has to improve economic vitality, public health, and civic equity. A graduate of the University of Cincinnati’s Bachelor of Urban Planning program at the College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning, with a Certificate of GIS, Rachel supported Tri-State Trails' Trail Monitoring Program in 2018 and 2019. Since 2020 Rachel has been supporting Tri-State Trails' Regional Trails Plan database management, Trail Monitoring Program, community outreach, grant writing, membership, and research efforts. Rachel's ultimate goal is to help Tri-State Trails make more informed, equitable decisions based on geospatial and data analysis. Reach out to Rachel for all of your GIS, Trail Monitoring, and membership inquiries.
Caitlin Sparks - Communication & Events Manager
Caitlin believes safely connecting people to their community and the greater outdoors is not just good recreational fun but the future of how we travel and thrive. She came to Tri-State Trails in October 2021 from Kentuckians For The Commonwealth where she worked as the Visual Communication Manager helping build campaigns advancing voting rights, clean energy and a fair democracy across the state. She grew up in Boone County, Kentucky where she attended Northern Kentucky University graduating with a Bachelor in Fine Arts. Caitlin is the Board Chair of the Dayton, KY Park Board and a Board member of the Village Green Foundation in Northside, home to MoBo Bicycle Co-op.
Brad Bowers, AICP - Project Manager
Brad has a passion for active transportation and connecting people to their community in a healthy, equitable and sustainable way. He graduated with a Bachelor of Urban Planning from the University of Cincinnati’s College of Design, Architecture, Art and Planning in 2017, and recently completed the Sustainable Transportation certificate program at the University of Washington. Prior to joining the Tri-State Trails team in 2022, Brad worked as a Planner II for Anderson Township’s Planning & Zoning Department where he served on Tri-State Trails’ Executive Committee from 2018 – 2021. During his time at Anderson Township, Brad gained experience in grant writing, staffed the Township’s Transportation Advisory Committee, and managed a variety of local sidewalk and trail projects. Brad is an active member of the American Planning Association and the American Institute of Certified Planners and enjoys playing ice hockey and mountain biking in his free time.
Tri-State Trails Board
Todd Palmeter, President - Great Parks of Hamilton County
Sean McGrory, Vice President - Clark Schaefer Hackett, Wasson Way, CROWN
Frances Mennone, Treasurer - FBT Project Finance Advisors
Tanner Yess, Secretary - Groundwork Ohio River Valley
Rachel Comte - Urban Canopy Works, LLC
Kate Greene - Urban Sites
William "Wym" C. Portman, III - Gallatin, LLC
Douglas Prather - Major Taylor Cycling Club of Cincinnati
Tri-State Trails is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, Federal Tax ID 31-1770299.