Friends of Carson Road Woods: News

Lawrence weighs grant matter

Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
The Lawrence Ledger

June 10, 2004

Council will discuss bike trail Wednesday.

With the June 30 deadline looming to apply for a state grant to construct a portion of the Lawrence-Hopewell Trail through the township-owned Carson Road Woods property, there is divided opinion regarding the grant on Township Council.

Mayor Mark Holmes is ready to apply for the grant when the council meets Wednesday at 8 p.m. at the Municipal Building, but Councilman Rick Miller still has reservations about the state Department of Transportation grant.

Township officials applied for the same grant last summer, but withdrew the application in the face of opposition from neighbors of the Carson Road Woods property. The 183-acre parcel is bordered by Carson Road, Carter Road, Belleview Terrace and Province Line Road.

The Lawrence-Hopewell Trail is a 20-mile loop that connects the two townships. It was proposed by a group of citizens and corporations, including the Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. and the Educational Testing Service. It would be built on a portion of the two companies' campuses.

Mr. Miller, whose home borders the Carson Road Woods, said that although he has not seen the proposed grant application, "there are a couple of things that still bother me."

For starters, the Lawrence-Hopewell Trail Task Force has not made a formal presentation regarding the trail to Township Council, Mr. Miller said. One public meeting was held with neighbors of the Carson Road Woods last summer, he said.

"It is not a governmental group," he said of the task force. "It is just a group of citizens and corporations that was formed to build a bicycle path. It has not come to Township Council. They owe it to us (to appear before the council)."

The councilman said he is concerned that the grant application is coming up "at the eleventh hour"--just as it did last year. Township Council was told of the grant application earlier this month. Last year, it was also placed on the council's agenda at the last minute.

This time, however, the circumstances are slightly different, Mr. Miller said. The public has been made aware of the pending grant application this time, although it is still being submitted at the eleventh hour, he said.

Mr. Miller also is concerned that the property--which was purchased with a combination of public and private funding--was presented as one that would be permanently preserved for open space.

The grant application does not mention details, such as the location or width of the trail, nor whether the path would be asphalt or stone dust, for example, Mr. Miller said. He added that he is opposed to constructing an asphalt trail through the property.

"I am disappointed that this is coming up again at the eleventh hour," he said. "There are no specifics on the plan. I would think that as a council member, it would be hard for me to say 'yes' to it."

Mayor Holmes, on the other hand, said the township should apply for the grant while it has the opportunity to do so. It would not be a good idea to "pass up" on the grant application just because the exact path has not been determined, he said.

"The trail is going to happen," Mayor Holmes said. "Some parts are still under consideration for their location. We have said it would not go near (the back yards of) the homes (that border the property). With that being said, we need to decide where it would be best suitable to go."

Mayor Holmes said he "understands and agrees" that the Lawrence-Hopewell Trail Task Force should speak to Township Council, but its failure to do so should not stand in the way of the grant application.

Many grant applications are submitted at the last minute, he said. The state is not giving towns much advance notice about possible grants, he said, adding that money is tight and there is competition for those grant dollars.

"It's a grant application," Mayor Holmes said. "Let's apply for it. It doesn't hurt anything (to apply for it). The other side of this is, if we do not apply, we have missed the window of opportunity."