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Commissioners approve Amendment No. 2 to Next Level Trails design work, await NDOT agreement for I‑70 tunnel
Summary
The board approved Amendment No. 2 to the Next Level Trails project to fund additional survey, design and limited utility coordination; state and city agreements on a tunnel under I‑70 remain required before construction bids can be awarded for phase one.
County Commissioners approved Amendment No. 2 to the Next Level Trails project to fund additional survey, preliminary design and limited utility coordination, a county staff member said at the meeting.
Larry Robbins, a county staff member, told commissioners the amendment covers additional survey and design work for the planned trail extension between Erie Canal and Eldridge Road, additional survey requested around Ray Park, and utility coordination related to AT&T at Davis Drive. Robbins gave a line-item breakdown: $8,000 for utility coordination (county share), $17,900 for the Ray Park survey, $13,003.10 for the preliminary survey from Erie Canal to Eldridge Road, and $41,200 for preliminary design for the Canal-to-Eldridge segment.
Robbins said the city will take responsibility for the Ray Park section and will pay half of the $8,000 utility coordination cost; the county will cover the preliminary survey and design for the Canal-to-Eldridge segment. He said the design work will determine how to make the connection between Eldridge and Canal and that construction funding for that connection is not currently secured.
Robbins also told the board that the first construction phase has been bid but the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is withholding approval pending a formal agreement between the city and NDOT for a tunnel under I‑70 north of Davis. He said progress has been delayed by staff availability over the summer but expressed hope the agreement could be finalized soon so DNR will authorize bid awards and the county can obligate its Next Level Trails grant funds.
An unidentified commissioner moved to approve the amendment; the motion was seconded and approved by voice vote.
The amendment will obligate the county's remaining Next Level Trails grant funds for the first phase, Robbins said, and leaves the Eldridge-to-Canal connection as a designed but unfunded future segment. Robbins and commissioners noted that maintenance responsibilities for split segments (for example, through Ray Park) still need to be determined.
The board did not set a construction schedule in the meeting; Robbins said he expects the DNR's authorization and NDOT/city agreement to determine when phase-one bids can be awarded.
