Published: December 01, 2008 10:45 pm      

Trail takes shape in Greentown

One-mile path follows the Brunk Ditch

The one-mile trail through Greentown is finally taking shape, and like the recently completed phase of the Wildcat Walk of Excellence through downtown Kokomo, the construction was the easiest part of the project.

“It’s almost ready for asphalt, after four long years of trying to get it done,” said Jolene Rule, chair of the Greentown parks and trails committee.

Starting at the Eastern Elementary School playground and running east along the Brunk Ditch to South Meridian Street, the trail comes courtesy of a $149,000 state grant.

It’s a bit shorter than originally envisioned, thanks to the high price of asphalt, Rule said.

But the 10-foot wide trail is still a beautiful amenity, shaded by the woods running between the Brunk Ditch and the Wildcat Creek to the south.

The work, performed by Hugh Wyrick Excavating, also features a canoe launch ramp where 50 South meets the Wildcat Creek.

Some day, trail backers hope the trail will run all the way from the town park along U.S. 35/Ind. 22, on the town’s western edge to the spot where Brunk Ditch crosses the highway on the east side of town.

The grant was approved in 2004, but getting state approval for the plans was difficult, Rule said. Like the Wildcat Walk of Excellence Phase 2, seemingly endless delays kept popping up.

“This has been four years. It’s not what you call instant gratification,” she said. “You wait and wait and wait. And just when you think something is going smoothly, something happens.”

The experiences in Kokomo and Greentown may hold a lesson for local trails proponents, however.

That’s especially true when one compares the experiences of proponents of the Nickel Plate Trail, a group which has made a phenomenal amount of progress in a very short time.

In July, the Nickel Plate group unveiled a 200-foot bridge over Pipe Creek near Bunker Hill, a bridge funded by state grants and local donations.

It was built by volunteers, as was most of the actual Nickel Plate trail. Running from Rochester to Cassville, most of the trail is still simply a rough, natural walking path through the grass. Some of it is graveled. And some of it is paved. Volunteers always seem to be working on it.

Earlier this month, a group of managers from an area financial firm worked all day on the trail, and then presented the Nickel Plate board with a $4,000 check.

Gov. Mitch Daniels seems impressed with the continuing public/private partnership which continues to build the trail, piece by piece.

When the bridge was unveiled in July, Daniels presented the group with a $900,000 check.

The trail organization had previously received a $250,000 grant from the Lilly Foundation that paid for paving south of Miami to Cassville.

The latest grant will be used to start development of the trail north of Peru and to finish two sections south of Peru. On the southern part of the trail, the money will be used for paving from 500 South in Miami County to Bunker Hill and from Seventh Street to Wallick Road in Peru.

About 15 miles will be paved by the time the grant money is spent.

Rule said she’s simply relieved they’ve gotten this far.

“Hopefully, one day it will go all the way [around Greentown],” she said. “This [stretch] is just Phase 1.”

Scott Smith may be reached at (765) 454-8569 or via e-mail at scott.smith@kokomotribune.com