Trails in the News - Press Clipping Files

10/16/2007

Wheelway to be Closed for Repairs

A three-mile segment of the Little Traverse Wheelway trail between Petoskey and Harbor Springs will close Tuesday, Oct. 16, for a monthlong maintenance and drainage improvement project.

The portion of the recreation path between Indian Hills Gallery and Pleasantview Road — which runs mostly parallel to M-119 — will be shut down while construction is in progress. Emmet County is responsible for trail maintenance in this area.

“Basically, it’s going to consist of doing some drainage work to help alleviate some of the water issues that come up, and also doing some basic maintenance and patching along that strip,” said assistant county controller Marty Krupa.

Portions of the trail in that area are lower than surrounding terrain, and limited drainage sometimes has led to issues such as standing water and dirt and debris washing onto parts of the path’s surface.

“It wasn’t really engineered to handle the extent of the drainage issues,” county controller Lyn Johnson said earlier this year.

The upcoming drainage and maintenance work carries a pricetag of about $32,000. Super M Excavating and Development of Pellston is handling construction along the trail for the county, with engineering and inspection services provided by Northwest Design Group of Petoskey.

At times, Krupa said the trail work could pose disruptions for vehicles entering or exiting driveways along M-119, but “we’re going to do whatever we can not to disrupt those driveways.”

The trail closure is expected to last through Friday, Nov. 16.

What’s in store

The Little Traverse Wheelway trail will be closed for drainage improvements and maintenance between Indian Hills Gallery in Bear Creek Township and Pleasantview Road in Little Traverse Township from Tuesday, Oct. 16, through Friday, Nov. 16. During this time, tasks such as ditch construction, culvert and spillway installation, pavement repair and general cleaning will occur along the trail.

Ryan Bentley can be contacted at 439-9342, or rbentley@petoskeynews.com.

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