Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Photo
David Szakacs of Lordstown tries out the new Niles Greenway Bike Path addition now open for biking and walking. The trail is part of the 100-mile Great Ohio Lake to River Greenway.
By Ed Runyan
NILES
If you looked at the new bridge over the Mahoning River built for the Niles Greenway Bike Path, you would correctly assume that part of it is new and part is refurbished.
But you would probably be wrong about which part is new and which is old.
The rust-colored trusses at the base of the bridge, which look much like the rusted steel beams at some of the factories nearby, are actually new.
The towering silver trusses, by contrast, were actually part of the original bridge, which had been unused for the past three or four decades until Aug. 31. It formerly carried trains over the river and over another set of railroad tracks parallel to the river.
Mark Hess, the Niles engineering and grants coordinator, said the designers of the renovation thought the bridge would look more authentic if some of the new beams looked rusted, so “weathered” beams were purchased.
But this surprising feature of the new bridge, now open for biking and walking, is perhaps fitting for a project that took 10 years to complete and endured several legal and bureaucratic challenges.
Hess said the bridge, which cost about $3 million, was the most complicated part of the $5.5 million, 4.5-mile trail. The federal government paid all but the city’s share of the engineering costs — $70,000.
In 2006, the city sued Ohio Central Railroad System to get a court order stating that the city could use the bridge, which it purchased in 1998.
The city also worked with Niles Manufacturing, which is adjacent to the bridge, to acquire a right of way, because Niles Manufacturing had acquired the land the city wanted to use.
And just this year, there was a dispute involving the general contractor on the bridge project, J.D. Williamson Construction of Tallmadge. It centered on whether the bridge should be reconstructed or removed entirely and replaced with a pre-cast model. The lawsuit addressed who should pay for $493,000 worth of change orders.
The Ohio Department of Transportation felt the bridge should be partially reconstructed, and ODOT had the final say, according to Hess.
Now that the bridge is complete, Hess said he couldn’t be happier — with how the bridge and bike trail came out and happy that the project is finally complete.
“This was for me one of the most challenging jobs to complete, but it was one of the most worthwhile,” Hess said. “I’ve learned a lot from it.
“When I look at all of the use it’s giving the people of Niles and surrounding areas, it’s a great thing. With the Wellness Center [built several years ago] and all of the new [Niles City Schools being built] in the coming year, it’s a nice time for the people of Niles,” he said.
Larry Friend of Stark County, who formerly lived in Niles for 11 years, said he thinks the new bridge and the trail around it give riders and walkers a peaceful and interesting view.
“It’s very interesting. It’s good to use your imagination to think what the railroad engineers saw when they rode through here.”
Referring to the part of the trail between the new bridge and a new downtown trailhead, Friend said, “It was a spirit of adventure when the new industrial period was just starting out a little over 100 years ago.”
The area between the new bridge and trailhead are just east of downtown, off of East Park Avenue and Grant Street. The neighborhood is a mix of residential, industrial and recreational. It features a tavern and a small park.
Gary Franco of Girard said he has ridden various parts of the bike trail for years, mostly for exercise, but he also enjoys nature and learning more about the neighborhoods he passes through.
“I traveled that road all the time,” Franco said of nearby Walnut Street. “I never knew this bridge was so close. I never knew all of this was here.
“It’s really nice this time of year — in the fall,” he added. “A lot of people come out just for the nature. I come out for the exercise.”
Franco bikes about 20 miles per week.
Mark Plant and Vikki Thompson of Girard said they came out on their bicycles last week to check out the new part of the trail.
“I ride the MetroParks in Cleveland a lot,” Plant said. “The MetroParks is close to the road, so you don’t want to be riding them at night. This is scenic,” he said of the Nikes Bikeway. “As long as you have a group, it’s OK,” he said.
Plant said he believes the rustic nature of the Niles Bikeway could be scary to some people.
“The trail itself is just as nice as the MetroParks in Cleveland. The bridge is really nice,” he said.
While riding the Niles Bikeway that day, they also saw a train on another set of tracks south of the river bridge, wildlife, lily pads and cattails.
The southern four miles of the Niles Greenway, which connects to the Mill Creek MetroParks bike path at the Austintown-Weathersfield line, was completed last year. Opening of the river bridge Aug. 31 made it possible to continue north on the Niles Greenway the last half mile to the city’s trailhead at the corner of State Street and Robbins Avenue.
The trailhead has 27 parking spaces, a pavilion and restrooms. Concrete picnic tables will be available soon, and a ribbon-cutting ceremony is planned for sometime this fall.
There is a break in the trail between the Niles trailhead and the southern city limits in Warren. There’s another gap just north of Warren. The trail is part of the 100-mile Great Ohio Lake to River Greenway, which follows rail beds from Lake Erie in Ashtabula County to the Ohio River in Columbiana County.