CLARKSVILLE, IN (July 2, 2024) – Its a problem that Clarksville town leaders have been struggling with for more than a decade.  How to safely connect Clarksville’s north end residents to the rest of the town via a pedestrian and bicycle friendly trail.  That is the problem town leaders hope to solve with the issuance of a new ‘Request for Proposals’ this week.

Clarksville Public Works Director Brad Cummings recently applied for and received a $90,000 grant from KIPDA’s Unified Work Planning Program, to study the safest route for connecting Clarksville’s Discovery Trail to Clarksville’s northern residents.  KIPDA, the Kentuckiana Regional Planning & Development Agency, provides regional planning, review and technical services in the areas of public administration, social services and transportation.

On June 25th, the Clarksville Redevelopment Commission approved a $30,000 match to the grant, bringing the study total to $120,000.  The RDC also approved a ‘Request for Proposals’ for engineers and planners interested in leading the study effort.  Interested parties have until July 22nd to submit their proposals to the town.  The selected planning agency will then have until June 2025 to complete the study and submit it to the Redevelopment Commission.

“The town has been heavily investing in trails and connectivity over the last decade, and we plan to continue until all residents reap the benefits,” said Ken Conklin, Clarksville’s Communications Director.  “Residents in north Clarksville have been without access to our current trail system for years and it is time for that to change.”

Conklin says the goal will be to create a pedestrian friendly trail from the Plum Lake, Plum Creek, and Plum Run neighborhoods in north Clarksville to Lapping Park.  Residents would then be able to use already existing connections to access the Discovery Trail and the Ohio River Greenway.

“The ultimate goal is for residents in the north end of Clarksville to have a pedestrian and bicycle friendly path from their neighborhoods all the way to the Ohio River,” said Conklin.  “This new trail will also allow residents in the south and central areas of Clarksville to access retail and other amenities in north Clarksville.”

Once the study is completed, town leaders expect to apply for state and federal funding in order to help build the trail connection to north Clarksville.  Over the last ten years, the Town of Clarksville has converted a former railroad corridor into the Discovery Trail, and built a bridge over Silver Creek to finish the Ohio River Greenway connection to New Albany.  The town is also currently in the process of a reconstruction of Riverside Drive, which will finish developing the Ohio River Greenway all the way to the municipal boundary with Jeffersonville.