York County to open Catawba Bend phase 1; dams, trails and grant-funded amenities moving forward
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Summary
Staff said phase 1 of Catawba Bend Preserve — entrance road, trailhead, restrooms and parking — is nearing completion and is slated to transfer to Parks in January; separate contracts for dam repairs, a greenway trail and grant-funded mountain bike and disc golf facilities will follow under design-build and design schedules.
York County parks and engineering staff told the Council on Nov. 10 that phase 1 of Catawba Bend Preserve is nearing completion and is expected to be turned over to the Parks Department in January.
Catherine, a parks department representative, said the phase includes the entrance road, a mile-and-a-half access road, a trailhead, restrooms, parking and a gatehouse. “We have it slated to be ready to turn over to parks in January,” she said.
Staff described a bundled design-build contract that will first repair three aging dams on park ponds and then move into Greenway Trail Phase 1, which covers roughly 1–1.5 miles and will include a 10-foot-wide, ADA-accessible asphalt multiuse trail. The dam repairs are scheduled to finish before trail construction begins; staff estimated the greenway portion allows about 18 months for construction and noted a projected completion around November 2027.
Several recreation amenities are grant-funded. The mountain bike trail project uses matching grants from the Land and Water Conservation Fund and the Recreation Trails Program and is scheduled to begin construction in January with an anticipated completion in July. The disc golf course has a $400,000 budget with reimbursement of up to $200,000; staff said construction is likely to start in January and finish in April with a brief user-adjustment period afterward.
Parks staff also highlighted operational milestones: new hires and certifications, a park store at Catawba Bend, extensive trail and hazard remediation (staff said crews hand-filled roughly 3,000 holes in groves), and community events drawing hundreds of attendees. Staff said one park had traffic counts of 5,700 cars in a week, highlighting strong public interest as facilities open.
Next steps: staff will bring construction contracts for mountain bike and disc golf projects to council in December and will coordinate marketing materials with construction timetables so public outreach matches on-the-ground availability.
