Officials moving forward with trail expansion
While discussing the weeklong El Dorado Walk With a Doc event that begins a 6 p.m. today, city officials said participants will be able to take a longer walk on a new extension to the walking/running trail on the north side of town.
Council Member Willie McGhee encouraged residents to take part in Walk With a Doc, in which local healthcare professionals take walks with citizens to promote an active lifestyle and to answer questions regarding health issues.
Walks are scheduled for 6 p.m. Monday — Friday and 9 a.m. Saturday, with a plant-based, potluck lunch following at 11:30 a.m. in the Parish Hall of St. Mary’s Episcopal Church.
McGhee mentioned the event during an El Dorado City Council meeting on Sept. 20, and Mayor Frank Hash said that while there is more work to be done, a new link to the trail — which encircles the Union County Fairgrounds, Lions Club Municipal Golf Course, and the El Dorado School District soccer fields — is serviceable and usable.
The extension is the first part of an ongoing, two-phase project to extend the 2.25-mile trail, which has become a popular and heavily used recreation spot since it opened in 2014.
The shorter loop, which may now be used by the public, adds just under a mile to the existing trail.
It loops behind the soccer fields toward the El Dorado Water Utilities’ north wastewater treatment plant and ties back into the existing trail near the back nine holes on the northeast side of the Lions Club golf course.
There are also plans for a southward extension that will lengthen the trail by another 2.5 miles.
The loop will wind south along 19th Street to Champagnolle Road, east toward U.S. 167 and double back north to connect to the existing trail.
The expansion project has been delayed for nearly two years, having been halted by the Arkansas Department of Transportation due to safety concerns.
The trail was originally built with a $500,000 federal grant that is funneled through ARDoT.
Robert Edmonds, director of public works, said funding for the expansion is coming from the same pool of money, and after approving the preliminary design and granting permission to purchase rights-ofway for the expansion, ARDoT suspended the work.
“There was an issue with an airspace permit. They thought it (the expanded portion) was too close to the highway. There were some safety concerns, and they wanted to vet it,” Edmonds explained.
State Rep. Matthew Shepherd, R-El Dorado, and Arkansas Speaker of the House got involved in the matter and helped shore it up last month.
“He helped us clarify exactly what we wanted to do, and after they looked at everything, the construction plans … I think we got that put behind us,” Edmonds said.
Edmonds said the city has “six pieces of easement” to procure for the southward expansion and afterward, the project will go to bid.
City crews still have some finishing touches to place on the
shorter loop, which included drainage, milling and leveling work, but for now, the surface is ready for use.
With winter just around the corner, Edmonds said he is unsure how long it will take to complete the first phase of the project and to begin work on the second.
“It’s getting to be a bad time of year for construction. Provided we have good weather, it would probably take about 110 days (for the longer loop). It’ll probably take the whole $500,000,” Edmonds said.
A streetscape project to lay new sidewalks is also ongoing.
New sidewalks have been installed from Madison Avenue to Memorial Stadium, and a new walking path has been built between the stadium (through the Boys and Girls Club of El Dorado ball fields) to the El Dorado Municipal Auditorium.
Edmonds said he is awaiting final approval from ARDoT to lay new sidewalks along North West Avenue between Main and Grove.
Tia Lyons may be contacted at 870-8626611 or by email at tlyons@ eldoradonews. com.