Wilmington Cross-City Trail – Planning and progress
The “pilot” portion of the Wilmington Cross-City Trail– from South College Road to Halyburton Park, past Cameron Art Museum and up Independence toward Empie Park — is underway now, and it looks like it’s going to be a fantastic benefit for the region.
The Cross City Trail is an eight food wide path, alongside but separate from the auto road, that walkers, runners, cyclists and others can use to get around. It will eventually connect with the Eastwood Road leg of the Cross City trail and with paths leading downtown to make a set of car-less arteries for the Cape Fear region.
As with the Island Greenway project in Carolina Beach, however — and against all the evidence — some residents near the trail believe the trail will endanger or devalue their property, and are opposing the development. (Nothing could be more wrong! Trail systems like this raise property values of nearby neighborhoods and of whole regions, and of course they also enrich the lives of residents that use them.)
And so the Cape Fear Cyclists have sent out the following message to their mailing list, about a public meeting this Thursday, where proponents and opponents will go to learn more and discuss the impact of the trail:
Mark your calendars to attend the Transportation Planning Meeting on Thursday from 5 to 7 P.M. at the County Government Offices off of S.College Rd. and near Racine Drive (in the Human Resources Training Center near the fish tank!). The WMPO will be presenting maps and plans for the College Acres segment of Wilmington’s Cross City Trail. (You can come and go as is convenient for you.)
Please participate to help residents of the area to understand the many values in having such a trail in their neighborhood. Currently there is some opposition to having the trail routed through their neighborhood. Throughout the country many such residents that have previously opposed rail trails and greenways near their homes, subsequent to the opening of the trails, have become enthusiastic users and cheerleaders of trails and greenways. They have realized increases in their property values because of the proximity of the trails in their communities…or in “their own backyards”. Mostly they have come to appreciate the enhancements to their family’s and community’s quality of life…health & fitness; cleaner air; easier access to schools, libraries, churches, stores, workplaces, friends, athletic fields, beach, or other local attractions. Trails will provide means of transportation to members of our community regardless of age, mobility, capability, or economic status. Increasing modes of access helps to relieve traffic congestion and the costs of transportation. Trails and green space help to nurture our bodies and spirits, while they help to build community connectedness and attractive neighborhoods with a neighborly spirit.
Wilmington and New Hanover County are gradually becoming a bicycle and pedestrian friendly region. A well planned, extensive network of trails such as the River-to-the-Sea Bike Route, the Cross City Trail, Greenfield Lake & Haliburton Park paths, and the Historic Scenic Byway will make alternate means of transportation safer, more convenient, and accessible to all. Wilmington will also be distinguished as a Destination City along the East Coast Greenway, a link in the 3000 mile off-road route that someday will host travelers along the coast from Calais, Maine to Key West, Florida.
The College Acres link will be an important segment of our local trail network. Come out to the meeting to support the concept as well as, the staff and volunteers who have helped to design this proposal. Listen and speak up. Explain how the trail will benefit you, your family, and the whole community. If you live in or near the College Acres area, it is especially important that you lend your ideas and support! Come learn how the Cross City Trail will provide connectivity throughout our region…and share your ideas and enthusiasm.
Cross-City Trail dispute ends up at the beginning
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From Chris O’Keefe:
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“(Nothing could be more wrong! Trail systems like this raise property values of nearby neighborhoods and of whole regions, and of course they also enrich the lives of residents that use them.)”
Where is the documentation supporting this statement? Don’t get me wrong, I’m a big fan of the Cross City Trail and have been using some of its completed segments to get around. However; I can sympathize with these residents’ concerns. The City’s website doesn’t give regular updates on the progress of the trail. The pdf map is misleading on the trail’s location and so to hear all of a sudden that your yard frontage was going to be compromised, well I’d be a bit miffed myself. The same thing seems to be occuring in my area, Pine Valley, as it’s unclear what the plan is for the portion of the trail around the current retention pond adjacent to Independence Blvd. Is the trail running on the outside only of that pond or will it loop it, bringing foot and bike traffic to the back of properties on the other side of the pond?
Naturally there is a safety concern for that established neighborhood, as there have been break-ins in the past and currently the pond is used for fishing. The complaints that I hear are not that people use the pond for fishing, that they drive their vehicles behind the pond. Is the trail going to cut through at Buckner Ave or continue along Independance? The difference is having a multi-use path along a section of city street/commercial area or right beside someone’s privacy fence. Naturally, I’d expect this individual to have some concerns. While I applaud the City for actually moving forward with the Trail so that we may enjoy it in this century, I feel they are lacking in keeping their citizens up to date on it’s progress.
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You’re making some good points here, Bill. Empirical data about the value of trails and greenways and the like is of course hard to find. I did see some survey questions about trails in Cary that have interviewees in large part answering that they thought their property values had gone up as a result of some trail development there:
http://www.nttp.net/resources/adjacent/sumadjacent.html
The important part is whether *buyers* share this feeling. I think they do. Maybe one thing you’re getting at is that a trail system can improve the overall value and attractiveness of an area but still saddle the directly adjacent properties with easements, property compromises, [foot] traffic and the like.
I also hadn’t considered the process itself and the city’s…opacity? Inefficiency? Hope this is a windfall and not a sacrifice for adjacent properties, and hope the city hears from supporters at the meeting tonight that this is important, and that they should put real attention on it.
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Council to move forward with Cross-City Trail
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