Back to the drawing board in New London
By Robert Cloud
The Newton-Blackmour Trail segment in New London has run into some obstacles that may delay its completion.
City Administrator Chad Hoerth told the New London Parks and Recreation Committee at its March 1 meeting that the state Department of Natural Resources has rejected plans to continue the rail-to-trail route into Pfeifer Park.
The city’s goal had been to bring the trail west from House Road where it currently ends, underneath the U.S. Highway 45 off-ramp, under the U.S. 45 bridge, then across the Embarrass River into Pfeifer Park, where it will connect with the city’s existing trail system.
New London has been working with Watco, which owns the track, the state Department of Transportation and the DNR.
Hoerth said engineers has been working on the bridge across the Embarrass River.
The bridge has to be high enough that a boat can float under it during a high river event.
“One of the challenges is that the banks are fairly low,” Hoerth said.
The engineers originally designed the bridge with higher abutments. But then the bridge would require ramps coming up both sides of the bridge.
At the same time, New London Utilities has power poles and power lines in the same area.
“We can’t put a structure here that they can’t get a bucket truck around the corner to service their equipment,” Hoerth said.
After the engineers figured out how to place the abutments and ramps without interfering with the utilities, they needed to study some hydraulic models to see the effect the bridge would have during a 100-year flood event.
Hoerth noted that the Embarrass River channel meanders in that area and the shorelines on both sides of the river gets flooded.
Because the bridge is located in a flood plain, the abutments would be in the middle of the flooding.
The engineers worked to lessen the impediment of water. They were able to bring it down to 0.01 feet.
“That’s one-eighth of an inch,” Hoerth said. “Evidently, that’s something FEMA would not approve.”
Hoerth noted that the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the DNR would not approve the bridge at that site.
“That puts a big wrinkle into this,” Hoerth said, regarding plans to bring the trail into Pfeifer Park via a bridge.
Hoerth said the city has received nearly $800,000 in grant money for the trail, which must be spent by the end of October.
He suggested the city develop the trail into the dog park area to the north of Pfeifer Park until engineers find a way to get across the Embarrass River.
Lighting for Veterans Memorial
Jim Jaeger, the chair of the Veterans Memorial Foundation, spoke to the Parks and Rec Committee about lighting the mural on a wall near the New London Veterans Memorial in Taft Park.
The Wolf River Art League painted the mural depicting an eagle and flag on the side of C&R Waterfront Bar and Grill.
Jaeger said the mural is not visible at night.
“You can drive down that street and you can’t see the murals at all,” he said.
The committee agreed to look into possible fixtures and costs.