ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1995, Roanoke Times
DATE: Wednesday, December 20, 1995 TAG: 9512200055
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG
SOURCE: BRIAN KELLEY STAFF WRITER
The Huckleberry Trail could move another 3.2 miles closer to reality next month when bids are opened for the section that will connect downtown Blacksburg to Merrimac Road.
Montgomery County officials will open bids for the rails-to-trails project on Jan. 10. The county advertised the project Dec. 3 and has sold plans to seven potential bidders so far, said Jeff Rice, an assistant county planner.
After two years of bureaucratic delay, government leaders this fall announced the Huckleberry's first phase had overcome its last regulatory hurdle. If a bid is accepted next month, then work could begin in March.
The 3.2-mile stretch would have an estimated completion time of six months, but might be done in four months, Rice said. That would make for a mid- to late-summer opening.
The first phase will extend the short existing trail from a sharp turn near Margaret Beeks Elementary School to a point beside the intersection of Merrimac and Hightop roads west of Montgomery Regional Hospital. The new trail section will skirt the Virginia Tech Airport, pass under the U.S. 460 bypass via an existing tunnel and pass by Warm Hearth Village en route to Merrimac.
The remaining 2.25 miles of trail from Merrimac to the New River Valley Mall is scheduled for advertisement in the summer with work beginning in the fall. The county is still working on land acquisition for part of that section.
In other recent Huckleberry developments:
nA Tech graduate student is developing plans for a potential trail-side park in the Merrimac area.
nThe county is negotiating trail-maintenance agreements with Christiansburg and Blacksburg.
nSigns explaining historic and natural features along the trail remain under development.
The Huckleberry Trail is a planned six-mile foot and bike path that will link downtown Blacksburg to northern Christiansburg. Beginning behind the Blacksburg branch library, it generally follows the right of way of the old Huckleberry railroad, which once linked Virginia Tech and the Merrimac-area coal mines with the mainline near Christiansburg.
Roughly 80 percent of the $900,000 project is being paid for with federal alternative transportation grants administered by the Virginia Department of Transportation. The Huckleberry received its first grant in October 1993. Delays caused by environmental, historical and routing issues led organizers to seek a second grant, which the state awarded in June. The remaining money is coming from local governments and private donations.
LENGTH: Medium: 54 lines ILLUSTRATION: GRAPHIC: Map.by CNB