Gadsden Mayor Craig Ford announced the United States Department of the Interior has awarded the City of Gadsden $2.97 million from its Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership program to develop the Downtown Gadsden Greenway. The city’s project is one of 54 projects selected nationwide from the $254 million program, and Gadsden’s is the only funded project in Alabama.
This phase of the Downtown Gadsden Greenway project will be a multi-use urban nature trail constructed on a retired railbed that parallels Tuscaloosa Avenue and connects to the Black Creek Trail System.
The city plans to acquire additional property along Black Creek to connect the Downtown Gadsden Greenway to the James D. Martin Wildlife Park located behind the Gadsden Mall, ultimately creating a trail loop around the city’s urban core.
“This is a game-changer for Gadsden,” said Ford. “Just six months ago, we approved the GROW Gadsden comprehensive plan, which included this proposed trail. Credit goes to my chief of staff, Brett Johnson, for advocating for this rails-to-trails project and to the entire team who worked tirelessly on this grant. I also want to thank the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs and Director Kenneth Boswell for their support and belief in our project. Now, we are looking forward to breaking ground on the Downtown Gadsden
Greenway!”
This grant project will serve as the catalyst for the future phases of the Downtown Gadsden Greenway that will ultimately form a complete loop around the city’s urban core. With plans for a future pedestrian bridge across the Coosa River, the trail will also connect East Gadsden to Noccalula Falls for active transportation, pedestrian mobility, and outdoor recreation. Along the trail, residents will engage with diverse ecosystems, waterways, neighborhoods, sports parks, schools, public transportation facilities, community centers, grocery stores, and healthcare services.
The grant will pay for up to 50 percent of the total estimated costs of the $5.99 million project, which includes an 8-foot-wide asphalt pathway, two trailhead facilities with parking areas, trailside facilities, gateway signage, kiosks, bridge safety reinforcement, removable bollards, security pedestals, sidewalk construction into adjacent neighborhoods, two timber overlook and resting stations, and ample pedestrian lighting throughout.
Recently, Mayor Ford joined the Mayors for Parks initiative of the City Parks Alliance, a nonpartisan alliance of urban mayors across the United States advocating for enhanced greenspaces within the nation’s cities. One of the goals of this alliance is to advocate for the
Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership (ORLP) program.
The ORLP program, established in 2014, is a nationally competitive, dollar-for-dollar matching grant program that aids disadvantaged, urban communities that lack access to close-by outdoor recreation.
The program provides grants for community-sponsored park projects where the population is greater than 30,000 residents. The program is managed by the National Parks Services and funded through the Land and Water Conservation Fund.
