YARMOUTH — With the help of a state grant and a local match, the missing section of the Beth Condon Pathway could be funded and competed as soon as next year.
According to Town Engineer Dan Jellis, the town submitted a Quality Community Program grant application to the Maine Department of Transportation in 2010 to help fund construction of the pathway along Route 1 between the Hannaford Plaza and the East Main Street ramp.
The 1.6-mile pathway was established along Route 1 in 2006, and named for Condon, a young woman who died when she was hit by a vehicle while walking on the shoulder. The path extends from Portland Street to near Interstate 295 Exit 17 – except for the middle section that hasn’t been built.
Jellis said there was not enough money to compete the total project, so the quarter-mile section of the path was left out of the original plan.
If competed, the section would connect to businesses, neighborhoods and two apartment complexes along Route 1. It would increase pedestrian and bicycle use and create a safe walkway along the Route 1 corridor.
According to the application, the path would be 10 feet wide and start at the Hannaford Plaza entrance. Under the East Main Street bridge the path would be 8 feet wide and then back to 10 feet, eventually connecting to the existing path at the East Main Street ramp.
The total cost of the project is about $500,000, Jellis said. The state would provide up to 80 percent of the total, and the town would have to provide a 20 percent match.
“We received an email about a month ago saying the project is funded for design and preparation for bid,” Jellis said. “All we need to do is dust off the original design and prepare it for new bids.”
The Town Council is expected to consider an appropriation of funds from surplus for engineering and design work at a meeting on Thursday, July 21.
Jellis said 20 percent of the design and engineering work would cost the town about $5,000, but the total town match would be about $100,000.
“If approved, this project could go to construction as soon as next year,” he said. “But depending on funding from the town and the state, it could be as late as 2015.”
The council meets at the Log Cabin, 196 Main St.
Amy Anderson can be reached at 781-3661 ext. 110 or aanderson@theforecaster.net. Follow her on Twitter: @amy_k_anderson.
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