The $7,000 request, which commissioners seemed to support, would be taken from a pot of $50,000 donated to Missoula County in 1996 by Atlantic Richfield Co. - the company responsible for the cleanup at Milltown Dam - for the purpose of extending the trail system.
“It seems to me like a crucial next step,” said Commissioner Jean Curtiss.
City planners want to connect the two trails, but it's proved tricky.
With increased development and a patchwork of public and private land, David Shaw, manager of the city parks and trails design division, has had to coordinate with state workers, private landowners and Montana Rail Link to piece together a trail system agreeable to everyone.
One section of the proposed trail system would make a three-mile loop that starts and ends at the Kim Williams Trail.
Where the gravel ends at the Canyon River golf community, the trail would run along Deer Creek Road before doubling back through a site south of Interstate 90 where three new subdivisions are proposed. It would then hook back into the Kim Williams Trail.
Discussions about extending the trail system date back to the early 1990s, said Peter Nielsen, Missoula County's environmental health supervisor. It's crucial to pursue the connection now to coordinate with developers building the new subdivisions, he said.
Extending the trail system looks promising, but a 2,000-foot stretch has caused some concern.
The city needs either the state or Montana Rail Link to donate a portion of their easement for a segment of trail that splits the interstate and the train tracks.
Montana Rail Link is more willing than the state to consider the request, but is concerned about liability and feasibility, Shaw said.
“It's encouraging they are willing to talk about it,” said Commissioner Bill Carey.
If a new trail is built on land formerly owned by the railroad company, the city is liable, not MRL, Shaw said.
The feasibility questions stem from the area's steepness. That 2,000-foot section of the trail would require 30 feet of switchbacks or a ramp, which could be expensive, Shaw said.
Even though the Kim Williams Trail and the trail running through the Canyon River golf community are both gravel, new sections of trail will likely be asphalt. And that's pricey, as much as $300,000 per mile, Shaw said.
But maintaining gravel is difficult, said Tim Elsea, a county engineer.
“It's a nightmare if you do something like that,” he said.
The preliminary engineering project will tell planners the exact length of the proposed trail, overall cost estimates and how much of the rail company's land is necessary to complete the loop.
That information will accomplish two things, Shaw said. It will help complete a grant application to the state, which may pay for most of the project, and also help convince Montana Rail Link to donate a portion of its easement.
City planners want to extend the trail system farther west toward Bonner and Milltown to connect with proposed trails and parks near the Milltown Reservoir cleanup site.
County commissioners will likely vote on the city's $7,000 request next week.
Reporter Chelsi Moy can be reached at 523-5260 or at Chelsi.Moy@Missoulian.com
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