SOUTHERN INDIANA — Radius Indiana expects to make significant progress with its portion of the Monon South Trail this year.
The organization is responsible for the largest part of the planned regional trail in Clark, Washington, Orange and Lawrence counties. Jeff Quyle, CEO and president of Radius Indiana, said the engineering and design work is currently underway for the project. He expects that 90% of the design will be complete by March, and the project will be ready to go out to bid this spring.
After a contractor is selected, the goal is to begin construction on the first phase of the project this summer, which will focus on the development of trailheads.
“So ideally, we will have portions of the trail open before the end of 2024,” Quyle said. “Our plan right now is to construct five segments of the trail this year.”
The City of New Albany is leading the development of its section of the trail in Floyd County.
Altogether, the trail will include about 63 miles from New Albany to Mitchell, and it will be the longest recreational trail in Indiana.
Radius Indiana is partnering with Taylor Siefker Williams, a landscape architect firm, and Clark Dietz, an engineering firm, for the trail project.
Radius and project partners presented plans for the project Tuesday at the Depot Railroad Museum in Salem.
The first phase of the project will start in Borden. The phase will include six trailheads within the municipal boundaries of Borden, New Pekin, Campbellsburg, Orleans and Mitchell.
“We want to try to put trailheads in downtowns so that we can bring patrons in for local businesses,” Quyle said.
The trailheads will feature amenities such as restrooms, shelter space, benches, parking, bike racks, information kiosks and water fountains.
Radius Indiana is planning 10-foot-wide paths with twof-oot shoulders on both sides. The trail will involve a combination of paved and crushed stone surfaces.
“When we’re inside the cities and towns, that will mostly be asphalt...when we get out into the rural areas or some of the lightly trafficked areas, we will use a crushed aggregate surface,” Quyle said.
Radius Indiana is also planning an extended trail segment connecting Borden and New Pekin. The 10-mile path will go from Deam Lake Road to the north side of New Pekin.
“We thought that connecting Deam Lake Road — not far from the Deam Lake Recreation Area — would give folks who are camping at the lake or hiking the Knobstone Trail a chance to extend their recreational opportunity to have an easy, non-motorized way into Borden or New Pekin. They can go eat lunch or do some shopping or have an adult beverage of their choice in the evening.”
Quyle said the City of New Albany “has been a great partner to work with.” The city is developing a 4.5-mile segment of the trail, and it is ultimately planning to connect the regional pathway to the Ohio River Greenway.
“We have regular conversations every couple of months to talk about what kind of standards we’re using in our trail design, and they tell us what they’re doing with their trail design, so we make sure we’re going to be compatible with one another,” he said.
Radius Indiana received almost $25 million from the state’s Next Level Trails grant program.
Quyle estimates the total cost of the project will be between $60 to $70 million, and he expects to spend more than $20 million this year.
He said community leaders are expressing excitement about the project.
“They’re excited to have this come through town,” Quyle said. “They want it to be a big success for the local communities, so that’s been a great reward.”
The regional trail will make a difference for Southern Indiana residents, he said.
“It gives them a place where they can walk and relax and visit with friends, so it’s good for local residents, and it also spurs folks to think about their communities a little differently,” he said. “They can start thinking about their communities as more attractive and more desirable now that it’s got a trail like this.”
It will also draw in visitors from outside the area, Quyle said. He expects it will provide new business and tourism opportunities.
“It makes folks aware of the communities — folks who in the past never really thought about New Pekin or thought about Salem or Borden — they’ll say, oh, the Monon South goes to that community? We ought to go visit,” he said. “So it will bring in visitors, it will bring opportunities for new investment.”
© 2024 Community Newspaper Holdings, Inc.