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Towns receive $10K for trail feasibility study
Three local towns have received more good news in their efforts to develop a bike-pedestrian trail along a National Grid right-of-way.
The towns of Kinderhook, Stuyvesant, and Stockport have jointly received a $10,000 grant from the Hudson River Valley Greenway to study the feasibility of developing the trail south from Kinderhook into Stuyvesant and Stockport along the right-of-way. The study will also explore the potential for developing a trail along the east side of the Kinderhook Creek, from Stuyvesant Falls through Lindenwald and back to the village of Kinderhook.
Earlier this year, Kinderhook received a commitment of $552,000 in federal transportation funds to develop Phase II of a planned trail along the same National Grid right-of-way from the Valatie Kill north to Niverville. The 10-foot-wide trail will have a compacted crushed stone surface and will include a bridge over the Valatie Kill. The trail is designed for walking, jogging, bicycling, cross-country skiing and snow shoeing.
In 2000, the town of Kinderhook received a $7,500 Hudson River Valley Greenway grant, which paid for a consultant to study the feasibility of developing the National Grid right-of-way trail within the town. The study, completed in 2002, played an important role in eventually securing the federal development funds.
With the current $10,000 Greenway grant, the three towns hope to replicate the process that led to Kinderhook’s successful project. As the “lead agency,” Kinderhook will soon seek proposals from consultants to conduct a similar feasibility study. The study is due to be completed within two years.
“Our first feasibility study supported the idea of developing trails to connect Kinderhook with Stuyvesant Falls and Lindenwald,” said Kinderhook Town Councilman Mike Kipp, who is the town liaison to the Kinderhook Trail Committee. “Now that Kinderhook is moving ahead with its trail project, we hope to build on this momentum and explore the possibilities of connecting with Stuyvesant and Stockport.”
The new feasibility study will look at the section of the National Grid right-of-way that runs south out of the village of Kinderhook, past Stuyvesant Falls into the town of Stockport to Chittenden Falls. The total distance is about 4.5 miles. There is no existing trail from Stuyvesant Falls to Lindenwald and back to the village of Kinderhook, a distance of about 2.5 miles; it would have to be developed.
The trail system could eventually connect key historic sites in the village of Kinderhook — the James Vanderpoel House and the Columbia County Museum — with Lindenwald, the Luykas Van Alen House, and historic mills buildings and hydroelectric venues at Stuyvesant Falls and Chittenden Falls. Parts of the trails closely parallel beautiful, undeveloped stretches of the Kinderhook Creek.
Mark Castiglione, the Greenway’s Acting Executive Director, said the agency “is pleased to be able to fund this feasibility study, which builds upon the success of a previous Greenway grant. This is an important intermunicipal trail project, which will potentially link to historic and cultural resources in the region."
The Greenway grant award comes at an opportune time for the Martin Van Buren Historic Site (Lindenwald). The park is expanding its acreage and developing a trail system that will provide access to several landscape features dating back to President Van Buren’s life. According to Superintendent Dan Dattilio, they are seeking funding for the trail system from a special U.S. Department of Transportation program.
“Some of the properties along the creek have conservation easements with the Open Space Institute, which has long supported the concept of developing a Kinderhook Creek corridor trail,” Dattilio said. “We’re very excited about the potential for linking trails at Lindenwald with an intermunicipal trail system that connects to other natural and historic resources.”
The three towns are now considering options for forming a not-for-profit organization that could accept donations for the trail project and possibly administer the trail system. The municipalities will be working closely with OSI, the Columbia Land Conservancy, the National Parks Service, and the Columbia County Department of Economic Development. Another key regional group is the Harlem Valley Rail Trail Association, which is now developing a rail trail that connects Copake and Philmont.
Stuyvesant and Stockport have individual liaisons to the Kinderhook Trail Committee for the past half year. Stuyvesant and Stockport recently formed their own trails committees to help administer the new Greenway grant and to develop public support for the trail proposal.
Stuyvesant Supervisor Valerie Bertram told the Register-Star that the trail system “would be wonderful for people who enjoy biking or walking and a great educational opportunity for our children.”
While the project will require a great deal of planning and work, Stockport Supervisor Leo Pulcher said “a lot of people” seem to like the idea of having trails.
The towns of Kinderhook, Stuyvesant, and Stockport have jointly received a $10,000 grant from the Hudson River Valley Greenway to study the feasibility of developing the trail south from Kinderhook into Stuyvesant and Stockport along the right-of-way. The study will also explore the potential for developing a trail along the east side of the Kinderhook Creek, from Stuyvesant Falls through Lindenwald and back to the village of Kinderhook.
Earlier this year, Kinderhook received a commitment of $552,000 in federal transportation funds to develop Phase II of a planned trail along the same National Grid right-of-way from the Valatie Kill north to Niverville. The 10-foot-wide trail will have a compacted crushed stone surface and will include a bridge over the Valatie Kill. The trail is designed for walking, jogging, bicycling, cross-country skiing and snow shoeing.
In 2000, the town of Kinderhook received a $7,500 Hudson River Valley Greenway grant, which paid for a consultant to study the feasibility of developing the National Grid right-of-way trail within the town. The study, completed in 2002, played an important role in eventually securing the federal development funds.
With the current $10,000 Greenway grant, the three towns hope to replicate the process that led to Kinderhook’s successful project. As the “lead agency,” Kinderhook will soon seek proposals from consultants to conduct a similar feasibility study. The study is due to be completed within two years.
“Our first feasibility study supported the idea of developing trails to connect Kinderhook with Stuyvesant Falls and Lindenwald,” said Kinderhook Town Councilman Mike Kipp, who is the town liaison to the Kinderhook Trail Committee. “Now that Kinderhook is moving ahead with its trail project, we hope to build on this momentum and explore the possibilities of connecting with Stuyvesant and Stockport.”
The new feasibility study will look at the section of the National Grid right-of-way that runs south out of the village of Kinderhook, past Stuyvesant Falls into the town of Stockport to Chittenden Falls. The total distance is about 4.5 miles. There is no existing trail from Stuyvesant Falls to Lindenwald and back to the village of Kinderhook, a distance of about 2.5 miles; it would have to be developed.
The trail system could eventually connect key historic sites in the village of Kinderhook — the James Vanderpoel House and the Columbia County Museum — with Lindenwald, the Luykas Van Alen House, and historic mills buildings and hydroelectric venues at Stuyvesant Falls and Chittenden Falls. Parts of the trails closely parallel beautiful, undeveloped stretches of the Kinderhook Creek.
Mark Castiglione, the Greenway’s Acting Executive Director, said the agency “is pleased to be able to fund this feasibility study, which builds upon the success of a previous Greenway grant. This is an important intermunicipal trail project, which will potentially link to historic and cultural resources in the region."
The Greenway grant award comes at an opportune time for the Martin Van Buren Historic Site (Lindenwald). The park is expanding its acreage and developing a trail system that will provide access to several landscape features dating back to President Van Buren’s life. According to Superintendent Dan Dattilio, they are seeking funding for the trail system from a special U.S. Department of Transportation program.
“Some of the properties along the creek have conservation easements with the Open Space Institute, which has long supported the concept of developing a Kinderhook Creek corridor trail,” Dattilio said. “We’re very excited about the potential for linking trails at Lindenwald with an intermunicipal trail system that connects to other natural and historic resources.”
The three towns are now considering options for forming a not-for-profit organization that could accept donations for the trail project and possibly administer the trail system. The municipalities will be working closely with OSI, the Columbia Land Conservancy, the National Parks Service, and the Columbia County Department of Economic Development. Another key regional group is the Harlem Valley Rail Trail Association, which is now developing a rail trail that connects Copake and Philmont.
Stuyvesant and Stockport have individual liaisons to the Kinderhook Trail Committee for the past half year. Stuyvesant and Stockport recently formed their own trails committees to help administer the new Greenway grant and to develop public support for the trail proposal.
Stuyvesant Supervisor Valerie Bertram told the Register-Star that the trail system “would be wonderful for people who enjoy biking or walking and a great educational opportunity for our children.”
While the project will require a great deal of planning and work, Stockport Supervisor Leo Pulcher said “a lot of people” seem to like the idea of having trails.
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