A $2 million project could extend this popular Peoria trail. Here's what we know

An extension of the Rock Island Greenway from its end point near Glen Oak Park to the Peoria riverfront is being proposed by city officials.

The plan calls for the trail to extend from its end point on Park Avenue in the North Valley, down Abington Street, across Adams and Jefferson streets and to the Peoria riverfront.

Extension of the trail is still in its initial planning phases and does not yet have any funding allocated for actual construction of the project. Federal funding has been allocated for the planning of the project to the tune of $375,000.

Total cost of the project is estimated to be around $2 million.

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Peoria city councilman Tim Riggenbach, whose 3rd District is home to the proposed extension, said the city is targeting all grant opportunities, both federal and state, to find funding for the proposal. He said city funds would also likely be required.

Riggenbach is highly enthused about the possible extension.

"I think it's phenomenal because you're going to have people who live on the north side of Peoria have a connection to the riverfront," Riggenbach said. "That's our greatest natural resource in Peoria that we sometimes take for granted, so to be able to allow more people access to the riverfront is always a good thing."

Completion of the extension will require some creative maneuvering to get from Glen Oak Park to the riverfront, as the Illinois Department of Transportation has told the city its preferred route for the path — which would follow an abandoned railroad track — is not allowed.

"We would just follow the abandoned railroad track line and just have it be a diagonal shot across the North Valley and be a beautiful connector to the riverfront. But because of IDOT's requirements, it's going to be a little more complicated," Riggenbach said.

The proposed path would follow an existing rail bed from the trail's end on Park Avenue to Abington Street. From there, it would turn southeast from Madison Avenue and cross Jefferson Street. The trail would cross Jefferson Street to Adams Street and then end up at Grant Street. From there, it would follow the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers driveway to the existing marina path on the riverfront from Caroline Street to Spring Street.

Riggenbach said there have been high-level conversations held about this potential extension of the trail for over 10 years but added it's likely at least two years away from completion.

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Last summer the Peoria Park District did work on the Rock Island Greenway to repair the trail's bridge that runs over Knoxville Avenue.

In 2022 the trail's last extension project brought it over War Memorial Drive on a former railroad bridge.

The Rock Island Greenway runs about 13 miles from Peoria to Alta, where it then connects with the state's Rock Island Trail, which heads north to Toulon.

The Peoria Public Works Department will be holding an informational meeting about the proposal Thursday at 5:30 p.m. at Woodruff Career and Technical Center.

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This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Popular Peoria trail could be extended to the Illinois riverfront