Knox County Park District says Kokosing Gap repaving will close path for initial week of work

David Hitehouse, director of the Knox County Park District, told the Knox County Board of Commissioners the long-discussed Kokosing Gap repaving project is expected to move forward within weeks and will require temporary trail closures. He said the initial work will likely close the path "from Mount Vernon Avenue all the way to Lehman" and that crews will mill and repave that section, estimating "a minimum of of a work week to make it through that process."

Hitehouse said the district has printed durable detour signs that will be moved as the repaving crew advances and that other nearby county roads and bridge work should allow riders to detour around the closure. He credited volunteer trail partners, saying the Kokosing Gap Trail volunteer board "continued to make the park district's life very easy on that 13 miles," and noted the project team has completed preparatory work including heavy reinforcement near the 229 trestle and tree trimming.

The director emphasized efforts to limit disruption and added that transitions onto bridge decking, which he said had not been worked on in about 20 years, will likely be renewed while crews are on site. The Park District did not provide a firm start date beyond "within the next couple of weeks" and said some schedule details remain subject to contractor sequencing.