FRANKFORT — Legislation to turn the long, rugged top of Pine Mountain into a state-protected trailway was passed Friday by the Kentucky House.

        Proponents promised that property owners in the area would not have their land grabbed.

        The proposed “linear state park” would begin in Pike County and run for 120 miles through Letcher County and into Bell County.

        It would be as wide as 1,000 feet in some places and as narrow as 100 feet in others.

        Under the bill, which passed 94-1, the Department of Parks would have to hold public meetings in the affected counties and produce a definitive map. The bill encourages the state to obtain trail space by easement.

        It forbids use of the state's condemnation powers to obtain private homes or cemeteries.

        “Everybody's going to benefit from this 120 miles in the long run,” said Rep. Johnnie Turner, R-Harlan, who got several restrictions written into the bill.

        But people will not feel like “they've been run over by a big train.”

        A frequent criticism of the legislation, which Gov. Paul Patton endorsed, was that too little had been done to sell the idea to people who live or own property on Pine Mountain.

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