Walton Family Foundation gives bike-trail project a boost

The Walton Family Foundation is helping Little Rock fund 10 miles of new mountain bike trails in the city’s River Mountain Park, a project that will connect with recently opened trails at Pinnacle Mountain State Park.

The project will include trails for cyclists of all skill levels as well as a “bike park” for new cyclists to practice their skills, Parks and Recreation Department Director John Eckart said.

Cyclists will be able to ride to the new trail from the Arkansas River Trail as well as to 13 miles of new trails at Pinnacle Mountain State Park, which opened in late September and are part of the Arkansas Parks & Recreation Foundation’s Monument Trails Program.

The Walton Family Foundation is contributing $600,000 to the project, which the city will match with $400,000.

The project has been in the works since spring 2018. Construction is set to begin this winter, and the new trails are expected to open in May, Eckart said.

At a news conference Wednesday, state and local officials said the two trail projects will make central Arkansas a cycling destination.

“It’s going to be on every serious mountain biker’s radar,” said Ward 4 City Director Capi Peck, whose district includes River Mountain Park.

The Walton Family Foundation has put more than $70 million into trails in Northwest Arkansas. Eckart said he reached out to the Bentonville-based organization to see if it would support a project in Arkansas’ capital city.

“You can’t really not see the development that happens up there, and it’s just incredibly important that we have those types of amenities for our quality of life here in Little Rock,” Eckart said.