Bradford Creek Greenway Work Resumes
A bulldozer smoothes the surface of the soon-to-be-completed Bradford Creek Greenway on property acquired from the Sunshine Oaks horse farm, visible at the right. (Record Photo | Charles Molineaux)
By Charles Molineaux
MADISON – After years of delays caused by a land use dispute, and then the weather, the bulldozers are rolling again on the Bradford Creek Greenway right-of-way and city officials predicted the next leg of the greenway project could be completed in a matter of months.
“Hopefully we’ll finish it before full winter time,” said Madison City Council Member Mike Potter. “Never say never.”
The current stretch of construction addresses a gap in the walking/biking trail north of Mill Road where work was stalled by opposition from property owner Tamara Powers. Powers had originally signed an agreement granting permission for the greenway to cross her Sunshine Oaks horse farm on Mose Chapel Road, then objected to the trail’s route, which bisected her property and ran between her fields and the Bradford Creek.
The design of the Greenway, largely funded by a $1.1 million federal grant, could not be changed without the lengthy grant application process being started over. The issue was resolved when the city agreed to buy the eight western acres of the property in a deal completed by the beginning of 2013, meaning work could resume, although at a higher cost. Chynoweth estimated the holdup added as much as $90,000 to the cost of the construction.
Then came the unusually wet summer, which held up construction crews with repeated incidents of high water and flooding along the Bradford Creek.
“Since they’re working on soils that are already wet, they’re not making a lot of progress,” said City Engineer Gary Chynoweth. “They’ve increased the manpower on it to hopefully make this thing happen this year.”
Completion of the current part of the greenway will produce a continuous trail running from Palmer Road to the south, to Heritage Elementary School to the north. The city’s plans for its newly acquired 8-acre tract will hinge on a citywide survey of parks and recreation needs now underway.
