Cyclists, officials team up to improve trail

Increased development on U.S. Route 224 is blamed for flooding on the trail.
By LAURE CIOFFI
VINDICATOR PENNSYLVANIA BUREAU
NEW CASTLE, Pa. -- The last 23 years haven't been kind to the Stavich Bicycle Trail.
Cracked and crumbling asphalt on portions of the Pennsylvania portion make it difficult to maneuver for the cyclists and hikers who travel the 12-mile trail, which runs along the former Youngstown-New Castle Streetcar line.
But a group of bicyclists have joined forces with trail and county officials to make improvements.
Carl Petrus, president of the Lawrence County Cycling Club, said some of the group's 75 members cycle on the trail, which stretches from just outside New Castle to the border of Struthers. The club cycles twice a week.
About eight miles of the trail is in Pennsylvania, and the rest is in Ohio.
"I believe it to be a very important asset to our community. It enhances the quality of life here. Both cyclists and hikers use it almost daily," Petrus said.
What's being targeted
An engineer by profession, Petrus has volunteered to study where additional culverts and ditches need to be built to stop flooding, which has lead to damage on the trail.
He said there are already 16 culverts and five bridges on the Pennsylvania portion, but increased commercial and residential development along U.S. Route 224 -- mostly in Union Township -- has caused more water to flow over the trail.
The water pools over the asphalt and freezes in the winter, cracking the asphalt, he said.
Petrus estimates the cost of putting in new drainage and resurfacing the trail will be about $270,000.
To date, the group, along with Lawrence County commissioners and the Lowellville and Hillsville Charitable Foundation, the group that maintains the trail, applied for one state grant and several grants from private foundations in western Pennsylvania.
If the money is awarded, Petrus said they can start work this summer.
Had sought funds
Lawrence County officials sought state money in 2001 to repair the trail, but were turned down because the project stretched into another state.
Amy McKinney, planning supervisor for Lawrence County, said they have tried to make it clear on the most recent grant application to the Pennsylvania Department of Environment Protection that the money will be spent only in Pennsylvania.
Petrus noted that the Ohio portion of the trail is in better shape and doesn't appear to need much work.
The trail was created in 1983 with nearly $200,000 from Campbell philanthropist John Stavich and his brothers, Andy and George. The Staviches went on to donate more money, and John Stavich left an additional $50,000 in his will to the Lowellville and Hillsville Charitable Foundation for maintenance.
Eugene Butch, one of the foundation trustees, said most of the $50,000 has been spent over the past 22 years. A Stavich family member donates $2,000 each year for maintenance, but it can't cover the increasing problems along the trail.
Butch, who owns Butch and McCree Paving in Hillsville, said his company tries to make spot repairs along the trail each year, but the problems have become too large for them to fix. He too blames increased U.S. Route 224 development.
"I helped build that trail. I want to see it continue," he said. "If we can get this help, we do a first-class job repairing it and it will be good for another 20 years."
cioffi@vindy.com