Preview of Project Access York Proposed Trail Locations for Landowners
On Tuesday, March 12, 2024, the city of York sent certified letters to the 21 property owners whose property lies in the path of the proposed Project Access York trail expansion. The letters invite the property owners to individual meetings with engineers and city officials before the proposed trail location gets released to the public for comment later this spring. The meetings will allow the landowners to discuss concerns that they have about where the trail crosses their land and other questions. Once the trail location is finalized, compensation for use of property and accommodations, like fences, to reduce the impact of the trail on the property will be negotiated with each of the landowners.
The city asked the engineers to design the trail to be as least intrusive as possible for property owners. The current trail proposal mostly sits on city property that runs alongside city streets and connects to trails in city parks. The proposed trail locations for about 9 miles of new pedestrian and bike access all throughout the city will only require negotiating permanent access to 21 properties.
In 2022, the City of York was awarded a $15.6 million federal grant for Project Access York – a pedestrian and bicycle trail project to improve safety and connectivity throughout the city and expand the current network of trails. On March 30, 2023, the city held a public open house to share information about the project and receive feedback from the public on the proposed trail location. Prior to the public open house, a day-long design meeting was hosted by the City of York and the city’s consultant, Olsson, and included input from business owners, law enforcement, city council, school district, chamber of commerce, county and city officials, and the Nebraska Department of Transportation.
This spring the city will work with the project engineers to present the proposed trail locations to the public and collect public input on the proposed locations. Notices for these meetings will be in local news outlets, and the city web page and Facebook page. If you want to receive notices about future meetings, sign up for the City of York app, or send your name and email address to Dr. Sue Crawford (scrawford@cityofyork.net).