Although the city of Carroll has announced the substantial completion of two trail segments within the community, users may find a gap in one. Director of Parks and Recreation, Jack Wardell, says that there are just a few punch list items for the work done over the past year on the construction of a trail segment beginning at Veteran’s Memorial Park, running south and then east of Fairview Elementary before turning back south and linking to existing trails.
The minor item that has extending the project is the reseeding that will need to be done in the spring. Wardell is confident the contractor is interested in ensuring that everything is done in a timely manner as Carroll is just in the infancy stages of adding inter-community trail segments. The gap, however, can be found on the segment that comes from the Sauk Rail Trail at Whitney, turns west onto Third Street and then north on Carroll Street. The one bigger obstacle they have faced in the course of the construction was the Union Pacific Crossing on Carroll Street.
Wardell says the easements were done years and years ago and it is taking time to get to those original documents. City staff members say that working with the UP is a slow process. They are able to answer to the railroad’s requests immediately, but it can take one or two months to receive a reply. Shive Hattery has been helping with trying to get an agreement made with the railroad so that construction on that trail portion can be completed right away next spring. Other work that is needed on crossings throughout town could help with getting the project completed more quickly.
