One more section of the Tualatin River Greenway Trail is now complete — a 12-foot-wide concrete portion that spans one-half mile — constructed behind River Ridge Apartments and Roamers Rest RV Park off of Highway 99W.
During a recent tour, Rich Mueller, Tualatin’s park planning and development manager, said the new segment runs from the back of the apartments, heading northeast as it passes the RV park before leading underneath Highway 99W and ending on Hazelbrook Road at Hazelbrook Middle School.
The trail will eventually end at Jurgens Park, Mueller said, but that project is still several years in the future.
“So now we're connecting this whole kind of north/west end of town — of the community — (under Highway 99) for bikes and pedestrians,” said Mueller.
To celebrate, a ribbon cutting ceremony is set for 1 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 1, at the site. The city is asking attendees to carpool because of limited public parking available at the location.
Mueller said both the state and Washington County paid for the majority of the project. That money includes an estimated $1.05 million in competitive grant funds distributed by the Oregon Community Paths Program, with Washington County pitching in $450,000. The county funding is part of a matching grant that came out of its Major Streets Transportation Improvement Program, also known as MSTIP.
The width of the trail will make it easy for both bicyclists and pedestrians to travel, Mueller said, although it does narrow in portions as it’s constrained under the Highway 99W bridge because of the structure’s footings. He thinks the new section could be good for 50 years, saving on maintenance costs because it’s made of concrete and not asphalt.
The new portion of the trail is also expected to benefit Hazelbrook Middle School students on their way to school and back.
“It's extremely difficult and not always safe for the kids to cross Highway 99, and so this puts them off-road under Highway 99 on a multi-use regional trail. It’s a lot safer,” Mueller said.
The trail passes the Tualatin Riverkeepers’ headquarters and there’s also kayak/canoe/paddleboard access to the Tualatin River near the Highway 99W bridges, which were built in 1955.
During the trail tour, paddleboarder Sarah Mauger pulled up along shore at the river access, accompanied by her dog. The Tigard resident said she had traveled to the location from Tigard’s Cook Park nearly 2 miles away specifically to see the Tualatin River Greenway Trail extension.
“It’s nice,” she said.
Along the trail, the city has planted native species of trees and other plants, and a large open area provides a picturesque view of the Tualatin River. Mueller said during a recent canoe trip along the Tualatin near Browns Ferry Park, he spotted numerous crawfish in the water. The crustaceans were the inspiration for the long-running but now defunct Tualatin Crawfish Festival.
Eventually, the Greenway trail will meet up with other portions of the sporadic trail. More prominent completed trail sections include portions behind the Nyberg Rivers shopping complex and at Brown’s Ferry Park. As funding becomes available, Tualatin plans to build more sections, which are usually between a half-mile and a mile long. The trick is getting permission to build it through sections that cross through private property.
Another project that helped provide access to the Tualatin River also lies behind the River Ridge Apartments, and was completed by the city of Tualatin as the apartments were being constructed in 2017. It’s a long, ADA-accessible ramp that leads from Highway 99W, all the way down to the apartment complex’s lower parking lot and makes it easier for those with mobility challenges to navigate the 80-foot drop between the highway and river.
Most Popular
Comments / 0