Pineville Steps Up Plan For Recreational Avenues

A ceremony to celebrate completion of a bike and walking path connecting Pineville to the new bike park will be held soon.

Specialty crews that came in to do the groundwork have completed their job and only a small amount of work remains, said Pineville City Clerk Melissa Ziemianin.

The trail will connect the bike park, down Sugar Creek Road to the corner a few hundred yards from the bridge on Eighth Street, Progressive Bike Ramps President John Hunter has said. His company is designing and constructing the trail. The company also oversaw the entire bike-park project.

Before work began on the trail, Hunter said the specialty crews coming in for the work had previously contracted work for former NFL quarterback David Carr.

Ziemianin said a date will be set within a week and a half to recognize the trail’s completion.

Last week, the Pineville City Council approved additional recreational planning by passing a resolution to adopt the NWA Regional Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plan for the city. The plan, proposed by the Northwest Arkansas Regional Planning Commission, is part of an overall comprehensive look at area needs that includes a fiveyear scale of projects, should city funding become available.

NWARPC’s membership includes 35 units of government in Benton, Madison and Washington counties in Arkansas; McDonald County and Pineville, Mo.; the Arkansas Department of Transportation; the Missouri Department of Transportation; transit agencies; and the Beaver Water District.

In mid-July, the commission hosted a meeting in Pineville presenting several bike and pedestrian long-term projects for the area.

Ideas include helping Pineville connect to Jane, Joplin and Bella Vista; connection to the Razorback Greenway; and connection to area campgrounds and parks.

Those projects include the potential for:

Developing sidewalks in and around the community center

Developing sidewalks in residential neighborhoods

Continuing to develop sidewalks in new residential development

Making crossing improvements along Eighth Street and Jesse James Road.

City Council members also approved the tax levy rate, which remains the same, as well as giving the go-ahead on contracting with Arkansas Rebar for $10,495 worth of rebar. The rebar will be utilized on the new water tower, Ziemianin said after the meeting.