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City staff outline strategic plan to expand and sustain Indianapolis Greenways
Summary
Department of Public Works staff presented updates to a strategic implementation plan that builds on the 2014 Full Circle master plan, prioritizes more than 100 miles of potential greenways, and includes design standards, maintenance budgeting and community engagement plans.
City Department of Public Works staff briefed the Parks board on progress updating the Greenway Strategic Implementation Plan, which is intended to move the city’s 2014 Full Circle Greenway vision toward a prioritized implementation and maintenance program.
Gretchen Zortman, program manager for Greenways and Trails in the DPW engineering division, introduced the presentation; Daniel (listed in the meeting as Daniel Stevenson and later as Daniel Hechlin) said the plan seeks to identify greenways to be constructed over the next decade, to update trail and greenway design standards, and to provide guidance on funding, maintenance and development adjacent to greenways.
Staff said the plan will include: a prioritized build order for remaining greenway miles (staff said there are more than 100 miles remaining in various stages of planning), updated design standards for safety and user comfort, guidance on trail-oriented development near greenways, and an operations-and-maintenance strategy that explicitly addresses inspection programs, rehabilitation (fog seal, crack sealing), signage production and staffing needs. Staff said they were roughly two-thirds through the strategic-planning phase and expected work products for three sections in the coming weeks.
As part of the planning process, DPW and consultants have studied best practices from peer cities, including St. Louis, Philadelphia, Houston, Columbus and Minneapolis, and have used a values-guided public-engagement tool that asks residents to prioritize lenses such as transportation connectivity, environmental protection, and access for underserved communities. Staff described an advisory committee, stakeholder groups, targeted community outreach and public information meetings where attendees completed a ballot to indicate priorities. Zortman and Daniel said the approach helps the team compare how different stakeholder groups value competing goals.
Board members emphasized maintenance of the existing greenway network as a priority. One board member cited wear-and-tear issues on Fall Creek Trail stretches and urged the plan to include pavement rehabilitation, striping, crack sealing and signage replacement. Staff said operations-and-maintenance is a major section of the draft and that a Greenway Development Committee was formed previously to help raise funds for long-term maintenance needs; staff said many maintenance funding sources must be local and that the plan will evaluate options for sustainable funding.
Staff said they will continue outreach and meetings with the Greenway Development Committee and other stakeholders as the plan is finalized.
