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Consultants present preferred alignment for countywide bike-trail study; public comment period to start April 10
Summary
A Johnson Wheel Engineering consultant outlined a preferred alignment for the Sandeep Bike Trail study connecting US-89 from Centerfield through Mount Pleasant to Fairview; public outreach opens April 10 with an open house April 29 in Mount Pleasant.
Johnson Wheel Engineering consultants presented the preferred alignment on March 25 for the countywide Sandeep Bike Trail study and described next steps for public engagement.
Consultant McClain Farmer said the study was funded by a federal grant and that the consulting team (with Alta Planning as a partner on statewide connections) produced a 30% design to identify feasible, shovel-ready segments. The preferred alignment shown to the council follows a spine route along U.S. 89 where right-of-way is already established and uses alternatives where needed through towns including Gunnison, Manti, Ephraim, Spring City and Mount Pleasant before ending at the Fairview City sports park on the south side of Fairview.
Farmer said the selection criteria included right-of-way availability, construction costs and user safety. The consultants plan to pursue segments in phases rather than attempting to construct all 45 miles at once.
Public involvement will begin April 10; a two-hour open house in Mount Pleasant is scheduled for April 29. The project website will accept comments and allow people to pin proposed routes and crossings. Consultants said public comments will be collected through April and May and used to refine the preferred alignment.
Council members asked about feasibility in constrained corridors, potential crossings on U.S. 89 and collecting riders from west-side neighborhoods to the spine route. Consultants noted some county roads (Mountainville, Pigeon Hollow) are tight but feasible with design work, and emphasized that project funding would require voluntary land agreements or purchases — eminent domain cannot be used under the funding rules the consultants described.
The consultants said the plan aims to improve the county’s competitiveness for state and federal construction dollars by having shovel-ready design packages for prioritized segments.
