By DAVE SCHULTZ
Three students from the Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology presented a possible track for an extension of the city’s trail system along the Wabash River to the Old Bluffton Cemetery.
The estimated cost of the work is $541,000.
The three students — Julie McGuire of Downers Grove, Ill., Kenton Pardue of Bedford, Ind., and Brandan Downey of Carmel, Ind. — looked at the possibilities as part of their senior project as engineering students. McGuire is going on to graduate school next year at the University of Texas at Austin, while the other two have jobs lined up with civil engineering firms.
The plans as presented by the trio Thursday night would extend the Rivergreenway trail from its current terminal behind the Hardee’s restaurant at the corner of Main Street/Ind. 1 and Wabash Street. The chosen path across the highway is not, however, at that intersection but rather a few yards north of it, between Water Street on the west and an alley on the east that borders Hardee’s property on the north.
The reason for that, they said, was the high cost of taking down existing retaining walls along Wabash Street and Johnson Street to build a trail that would be 8 feet wide — a width necessary to conform to Americans With Disabilities Act requirements.
The crossing at Water Street would be similar to the crossing at the Willowbrook subdivision further north on Main Street.
When the trail got into the flood plain of the Wabash River along Marion Street, the plans call for the construction of a boardwalk to carry pedestrians over the area.
The three students first came to Bluffton in October to review the site and its potential, and remarked often during their presentations about the hidden beauty that the trail would showcase to the city’s residents and to its visitors. Their proposal included some observation platforms.
Also included were proposals for trailhead facilities, including a pavilion, at the trail’s terminus near the Old Bluffton Cemetery on Hale Street.
Audry Dudley, the coordinator for Wells County Tourism, noted that the proposal would take the trail in front of the Wells County Chamber of Commerce office where the tourism initiative is centered, giving everyone who makes use of it an opportunity to visit the building for more information.
Dudley, Doug Sundling, and Brandy Fiechter worked with the students during their time in Bluffton. Sundling is the city’s former consultant for planning and infrastructure and Fiechter is superintendent of the Bluffton Parks and Recreation Department.
The estimated costs for the trail extension break down as follows:
• Trail, $350,000.
• Boardwalk, $105,000.
• Platforms, $16,000.
• Trailhead, $70,000.
Bluffton Mayor John Whicker said it was “doable,” based on the cost estimate.
The city received grants to cover much of the costs for the extension of the Interurban Trail to Lancaster Park and for the development of Lancaster Park.
daves@news-banner.com
