Plans are rolling along for the Lake City Greenway Project, according to a presentation given Tuesday to the Warsaw Parks Board.

Jeff Noffsinger, city planner, and Andy McCleary, Warsaw parks activities director, said the project will eventually include a path for biking, walking, jogging, skating, etc., from the Chinworth Bridge on the west to Roy Street, in Winona Lake, on the east.

Tuesday's meeting was an opportunity for the public to hear and comment on the plans for the Greenway. Not one of the approximately 30 people there voiced opposition to the plan.

Included in the Greenway will be a path from Kosciusko Community Hospital to Pike Lake. That path will include a raised boardwalk through a wetlands area, Noffsinger said, and will "also create an opportunity for residents of the area to get back to nature."

Noffsinger said the Greenway will be financed with government grants and contributions from local organizations, businesses and individuals. Already the project has received a $960,000 grant from the Indiana Department of Transportation, $30,000 from the Kosciusko County Foundation and $10,000 for planning from the Indiana Department of Commerce.

The Indiana Department of Natural Resources has contributed $100,000 for the wetlands boardwalk.

"I think we can pull this project off solely with private funding and federal sources," Noffsinger said. "We won't have to use any property tax funding."

The project is planned in phases, and includes the main Greenway through Warsaw and Winona Lake, and adjacent loops, such as the route from KCH to Pike Lake. The east-west path will be a total of around eight miles and cost approximately $1.55 million.

Safety is a major factor in planning the Greenway, Noffsinger said, and includes signs and flashing lights where the proposed path crosses city streets.

In areas where the path is planned on the abandoned CSX Railroad right of way, Noffsinger said, fences will separate the path from the rails. However, negotiations are still under way with the railroad.

"We expect that to be the biggest challenge - working with the railroad company," he said.

If funding goes as expected, Noffsinger and McCleary hope to get construction going on the first segment, from the Chinworth Bridge, past the City-County Athletic Complex to Center Street in Boggs Industrial Park, by fall.

The cost of that segment, including renovation of Chinworth Bridge, is estimated at $550,000.

In other business, the Parks board:

• Approved rules for Mantis Skate Park.

• Approved a fitness class, "The Balanced Body," to be offered by the Warsaw Parks Department, starting May 23. The six-week course, taught by Aaron Wilson, will cost $70 and include classes for adults and seniors.

• Approved Combined Community Services to hold food drives at the June 23 and July 28 concerts. A request for CCS to do half-and-half raffles was tabled until the board can learn more about permits and regulations required by the city and state.

Members of the Warsaw Parks Board are: Don Clemens, Bob Richmond, John Sadler, Toby Sumpter, Cathy Folk and Jeff Grose. [[In-content Ad]]