State funds will help renovate GAP trail in Mon Valley
A part of the Great Allegheny Passage in the Mon Valley will be renovated, thanks to state grant money that was awarded Thursday, state Rep. Austin Davis said.
Mr. Davis, D- Allegheny, said $ 407,000 will be used to renovate approximately 1.1 miles of trail in Munhall, Homestead and West Homestead.
The section of the trail slated for improvements stretches from Waterfront Drive to the Homestead Grays Bridge.
“This is yet again another great example of what state funding can do for our community,” Mr. Davis said. “This project alone will not only benefit residents looking to utilize the passage, but it also will enhance tourism across the Mon Valley, which means more foot traffic and money spent in our community. I look forward to the completion of this project.”
The project will include paving and landscaping, as well as Americans with Disabilities Act access points and new signage on an as- needed basis. The project is expected to begin sometime in spring 2021, according to Leslie Pierce, business manager for the Regional Trail Corp.
Ms. Pierce said the 1.1- mile stretch of trail was the only portion of the Great Allegheny Passage in urban areas that was previously unpaved and suffered from bad drainage.
As a result, she said, that trail became uneven and muddy since the passage’s completion in 2013, forcing many people using the trail to instead walk along a nearby main road.
The project will not only mend the sections damaged by the weather, she said, but may also keep people safer by enticing them to stick to the trail.
The renovation will be funded by one of more than 40 grants supported by the Keystone and Environmental Stewardship funds. It also will draw funds generated from the registration of all- terrain vehicles and snowmobiles, and federal Pennsylvania Recreational Trails funds awarded statewide in 2020. In all, the grants fund approximately $ 7.6 million in trail projects, including planning, construction and
rehabilitation.
Other grants in Allegheny County under the program include $ 126,000 toward the development of the Montour Woods Greenway trail in Moon and Robinson and $ 200,000 toward the development of Morton Complex/ Community Gardens Connection Perimeter Trail in Boyce Mayview Park, Upper St. Clair.
The program also will award $ 500,000 toward the acquisition of nearly 7.5 acres in Pittsburgh to provide approximately 1 mile of trail for the development of the Three Rivers Heritage Trail.