VERNON — Vernon has received official notification that the town will be awarded $1,086,100 to complete a long-awaited trail project.
The Vernon plan for the Next Level Trail will extend along a path between the Vinegar Mill Overlook in Muscatatuck County Park, along the Muscatatuck River, to Commons Park in Vernon.
Plans for the project include two outdoor restrooms along the path. One restroom will be built near the Vernon Gymnasium and a second restroom will be built near Commons Park.
The plan also includes the building of a large overlook shelter along the ridge overlooking the river near the gymnasium, and a second, smaller shelter near the Commons.
According to Vernon Mayor Dan Wright, the master plan for the trails was designed to connect both Vernon and North Vernon by a series of bike and pedestrian trails.
“Many people worked very hard on this project, but it would never have happened without the pro-bono Trails Master Plan developed by Steve Gill,” Wright said.
The North Vernon portion of the plan was submitted in the city’s bid for the Stellar City Grant, which they did receive.
In order to complete the Vernon portion of Gill’s Trails Master Plan, volunteer Amber Fields helped Wright prepare the bid for consideration in the second round of the Department of Natural Resource Next Level Trails grant program.
In mid-March, Wright received the letter dated and signed by the NLT team stating, “we received a substantial number of applications competing for the $30 million available for the second round. Of the 62 projects submitted for consideration, yours was one of 18 selected in this highly competitive program.”
Wright said he’s looking forward to construction getting started.
“The news that we will receive the money is very good news,” Wright said. “The amount is higher than we hoped for, but with the increase in construction costs, we will have to work hard to stay within the budget and still get everything done.”
