What’s happening?
Council members previously approved an application seeking up to $12 million for construction of the regional hike-and-bike trail through Coppell. While the application was submitted on time, the grant program only has $42 million available to projects across the U.S., Senior Program Manager Karla Windsor said.
Staff with the North Central Texas Council of Governments want to repackage the grant application and include an additional portion of the trail running through Carrollton, she said.
The application will then be resubmitted through the federal Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program instead. The program features a larger pot of money with $457 million available for projects across the country.
The details
If awarded, the grant would fund more than 4 miles of the trail running through Addison, Coppell, Dallas and Carrollton. The grant application will include an additional 1.17-mile section of the trail through Carrollton that was not included in the NCTCOG’s application earlier this year.
The NCTCOG is partnering with Dallas Area Rapid Transit to request $23 million in federal funding for trail construction. Local match funds will come from a mix of regional toll revenues and federal funding that’s already available to the NCTCOG. The NCTCOG will also be able to reprogram local match funds from the grant application earlier this year in order to meet the local match requirements for this grant program.
Looking back
The NCTCOG has had success with the Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program before. The U.S. Department of Transportation awarded $80 million to the NCTCOG in March for four pedestrian projects across the region, including the Lower 5 Plaza Project in McKinney.
DOT officials opened the program to new project applications in July. This year, the program is requiring an equal split between program funds awarded and local funds, Windsor said.
About the project
The Cotton Belt Trail is a proposed 57-mile trail that will link several cities, including Grapevine, Coppell, Richardson and Plano, according to the NCTCOG’s website. Part of the trail will run along the 26-mile Silver Line Rail project, which is also under construction. DART oversees design and construction for the Cotton Belt Trail and Silver Line Rail projects between Dallas Fort Worth International Airport and Plano.
Construction of the Cotton Belt Trail is split into three phases. Construction on the first phase is already underway, while the second phase is slated to head to the procurement phase this fall.
Nearly 21 miles of the trail already exist between Grapevine and Fort Worth. Nearly 22 miles are already funded for construction. About 15 miles still need funding for construction, according to the NCTCOG’s website.
