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O'Fallon staff urges focus on maintaining paths and pursuing outside funding
Summary
City staff told the Public Works Advisory Committee that O'Fallon has roughly 339 miles of bike/pedestrian infrastructure valued at about $148 million, but an annual dedicated maintenance budget of about $200,000 leaves the city behind; staff recommended prioritizing maintenance and seeking outside grants and partnerships.
Chris Clerks, the city's capital improvements manager, told the Public Works Advisory Committee on Sept. 17 that O'Fallon needs to prioritize maintenance of its path, trail and sidewalk network while pursuing outside funding for larger arterial connections.
Clerks presented an updated inventory of the city's walking and biking facilities and the history of planning efforts dating to a 2009 bikeable/walkable plan. "We have about 339 miles of infrastructure at a general value of about $148,000,000," Clerks said, adding that if planned buildout occurs the city could reach roughly 462 miles and an estimated $260,000,000 in asset value.
He warned the committee that current local funding is limited: "If we only have $200,000 to spend on a path or some kind of maintenance for our infrastructure, we're falling behind every minute," Clerks said, noting an additional roughly $80,000 typically committed to the city's ADA transition plan for curb ramps.
Clerks gave a concrete cost example to illustrate scale: upgrading a roughly 1,750 lineal foot sidewalk segment in a residential area to a 10-foot shared-use path was estimated at about $450,000. He said the city receives resident requests for small gap-fill projects but that design, easement acquisition and construction costs can push even short segments into the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Committee members largely agreed maintenance and targeting high-use gaps should come before widescale widening unless outside funding is available. "Continue to pursue outside funding sources as best as possible and keep partnering with these other entities within the county and the region to get those dollars," one committee member said. Multiple members expressed support for focusing on maintaining existing infrastructure rather than prioritizing width increases where demand is low.
Committee members asked about coordination with regional partners. Clerks described an ongoing relationship with Great Rivers Greenway, East-West Gateway and Saint Charles County and said the city is coordinating with MoDOT on the I-64/Darden connector, which includes a 12-foot shared-use path on a bridge being rebuilt.
Clerks said staff will incorporate the committee's input into the city's strategic planning process and will present similar material to City Council the following week. He invited committee members to submit follow-up questions by email.
The committee did not take formal action on the path priorities; the presentation was informational, with staff asked to fold the input into the upcoming strategic plan.
