| Grant will pay for hike and bike bridge
By Kristyne E. Demske UTICA — The final piece of the puzzle appears to be in place for Utica to become a hike and bike haven this summer. A bridge spanning the Clinton River and connecting two sides of the trail to be built this summer was one of several projects awarded money from federal transportation enhancement dollars doled out through the Michigan Department of Transportation in February. Out of the total pot of more than $5 million, Utica’s project received $303,192. “This was a grant we had applied for some time ago and had a conditional commitment from MDOT,” said City Treasurer Phil Paternoster. The city was awarded a grant in 2008 from the Michigan Natural Resources Trust Fund to pay for 56 percent of the cost of the hike and bike trail that will pick up from Sterling Heights at the bridge in front of Heritage Park, go through the park and connect to Nichols Street where part of the path is already in place. It would then continue the path on the north side of Davis Street up to Auburn Road downtown. But Paternoster said that grant, and matching money promised by the Downtown Development Authority and the Parks and Recreation Committee, wasn’t enough to pay for the pedestrian bridge needed to cross the Clinton River in Heritage Park. “It wasn’t sufficient enough to complete the project, so we applied for this transportation enhancement grant,” he said. He said the DDA has committed about $200,000 and the parks committee about $87,000 for the matching portion of the MNR Trust Fund grant. The city will pay about $149,000 in matching funds for the MDOT grant.” The money has all been budgeted for the project out of gasoline taxes, the DDA and fundraising by Parks and Recreation. “We were very relieved, because without it the project wasn’t going to go,” Paternoster said. “We’d end up with trails on either side of the river and no way to connect it.” Gov. Jennifer Granholm said in a statement that projects like these are important to the state’s economic growth. “In tough economic times, transportation enhancement grants are more valuable than ever,” she said. That echoed what Mayor Jacqueline Noonan has been saying for quite some time about the trail, most recently calling it an important “economic driver” in her State of the City address in January. Department of Public Works Director Bill Lang said they plan to start work as soon as the bids are in order and the weather breaks, hopefully in the early spring. The MNR Trust Fund grant has a sunset date of Sept. 30, he said, so they have to do their best to complete the trail by then. He said the goal is to complete the whole project, including the bridge, this year. “We’re kind of under the gun to get moving,” he said. You can reach Staff Writer Kristyne E. Demske at kdemske@candgnews.com or at (586) 498-1041. |
