SYRACUSE -- City of Syracuse officials are developing a trail along Onondaga Creek that could provide the opportunity for all types of recreational activity.
Project Manager Steven Nann said, "the Creekwalk project has been in the design process for several years and it should be going into construction next spring, so it will be done by 2010."
The Creekwalk will begin in Armory Square in downtown Syracuse. Then the trail will extend more than two miles to the mouth of Onondaga Lake. The project is being constructed in phases to deal with logistic challenges, the latest of which involves the CSX railroad.
City officials must get permission from CSX to have access under a railroad bridge along the trail.
Chuck Stanton, an engineer from C&S Companies, said “this is one in many hurdles you have to overcome in order to get a transportation project done.”
Engineers need to have permits to expand the trail in the area. Stanton says construction there would be minimal. “This really isn't a lot of construction in terms of impact to the city and the project. This is construction of some additional fence and an overhead walkway that will be between the pedestrians and the CSX railroad to prevent debris from falling on them.”
When the project is complete, the Creekwalk will also connect to Onondaga County's Loop the Lake Trail and the Erie Canalway Trail.
