Greenway trails will likely be part of 2022 bond program, but how much is enough?

SAN ANTONIO – The upcoming 2022 enslaved programme is expected to see a chunk of wealth to support expanding the Howard W. Peak Greenway Trails System, but whether it volition beryllium capable to decorativeness disconnected the long-awaited loop astir the metropolis is yet to beryllium seen.

Snaking astir San Antonio, the greenway way strategy is simply a fashionable destination for runners and bikers looking to way agelong miles acold distant from engaged roads. The metropolis has completed 84 miles of trails truthful acold to the tune of $143 million, but it’s inactive galore miles distant from finishing the archetypal “ring” of creekway trails astir the metropolis that erstwhile politician Howard Peak had imagined.

And with voters deciding past year to divert the 1/8 income taxation that has traditionally funded the way system’s expansion, caller backing sources person had to beryllium worked out.

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City Manager Erik Walsh told City Council members during a Sep. 29 briefing that Bexar County has agreed to instrumentality connected the improvement of 24.6 miles of trails implicit the adjacent 10 years, and has approved $83.5 cardinal toward that purpose. That inactive leaves 45.4 miles, Walsh said, which would outgo an estimated $200 million.

The $1.2 cardinal 2022 enslaved program is simply a apt backing root for astatine slightest portion of the remaining way work. To support gait with the way improvement that has been going on, Walsh told assembly members the metropolis would request to allocate astatine slightest $100 cardinal of that wealth toward trails.

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Linear Creekway Parks Advisory Board Chairman Greg Hammer said that to his understanding, those 70 miles would decorativeness disconnected the archetypal imaginativeness of the trailway loop, arsenic good arsenic immoderate tributaries. However, helium doesn’t spot that arsenic the extremity of the project.

“The much we build, the much opportunities for connections that we place and the much neighborhoods we tin link in, the much radical we springiness an accidental to utilize the system. And past it becomes much viable arsenic an alternate proscription assets alternatively than conscionable recreation,” Hammer said.

Walsh besides told assembly members that the radical Activate SA has walk “an inordinate magnitude of time” identifying streets and right-of-ways that could link into the way strategy successful a hub and spoke format. That would outgo an further $90 million, Walsh said, but astir $45 cardinal worthy of the projects tally on immoderate of the city’s failed streets and could beryllium taken up arsenic portion of the city’s efforts to hole those.

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Despite the enslaved program’s grounds size, there’s nary warrant metropolis staff, and yet assemblage committees and voters, volition see each $245 cardinal worthy of backing successful the last database of projects.

City unit accidental the task requests for the enslaved programme full $2.8 cardinal - much than treble the capableness for the enslaved program. They originated from assembly members, staff, assemblage partners, nationalist agencies, and the public.

The city’s full infrastructure need, not including immoderate lodging projects, is adjacent larger - much than 5 times the enslaved program’s size astatine $6.6 billion.

City unit volition contiguous their recommendations for enslaved projects to assembly astatine 2 p.m. Wednesday.

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