The Marquette Greenway Trail continued to see progress in 2024. Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission (NIRPC) Active Transportation Planner Mitch Barloga gave an update on the planned 60-mile trail from Chicago to Michigan to NIRPC's Transportation Committee on Tuesday.
"And I'm proud to say that over half of it, 32 miles, are now officially built — in the ground, that you can ride, physically, today," Barloga said. "Then, you add another 12 miles we have fully-funded, so those are ready to fire off very shortly. So, within another year or two, you're going to have over 40 miles done."
Now, NIRPC is working with Hammond and Gary to apply for a federal RAISE grant for a 3.7-mile segment on Gary's west side. That will involve rehabilitating an abandoned railroad bridge over the Indiana Toll Road.
"That is there. That is hulking. That is not going anywhere," Barloga said, as he showed committee members photos. "It is steel. It is concrete. It is sturdy . . . and as you can see, it's quite safe."
Meanwhile, the National Park Service will oversee the section through the east side of Gary. That will involve replacing two bridges, including one that the Norfolk Southern Railway tore down before it could be reused for the trail.
"Now we're looking at an almost $10 million facility to make that work again," Barloga noted. "It's quite a crossing. So that was a lost opportunity for us to try to work with Norfolk Southern and say, 'Hey, hold off on that. We could probably rehab it,' but here we are."
A trail segment in Portage would run alongside a planned extension of Ameriplex Drive to U.S. 12 near Odgen Dunes.
The Marquette Greenway also got a boost from the Lilly Endowment's $20 million grant for the NWI Thrive project. Barloga said that will include funding to connect the trail to the lakeshore, as well as $400,000 dollars in seed money for trail maintenance.
But who's ultimately responsible for that maintenance still remains to be seen. While each community typically maintains its own trails, Barloga said help may be available for those unable to do it.
"It does go through some distressed communities that may not have the resources to take care of the trail, and it's just one of those things that we're just going to have to work on with the communities, to find out where there are deficits," Barloga explained.
Barloga said there's also a fundraising matching challenge for the Marquette Greenway Trail fund at the Legacy Foundation.
