The Friday morning gathering at the Little Calumet River trailhead to formally break ground for construction of around two miles of the Marquette Greenway Trail was years in the making.
It was raining so hard before the ceremony held in the Indiana Dunes National Park that the old song “Singin’ in the Rain” played appropriately over the loudspeaker system.
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But around 50 people still turned out for the ceremony. Ty Warner, executive director of the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission, noted it was a “great day for a groundbreaking” because the ground was so soft.
Those who have been involved with the project for years were just glad this day arrived.
“For many of us, it’s been a lot of years,” said Burns Harbor Councilwoman Roseann Bozak, noting that there were times when one wondered whether the project would ever come together.
The nearly two miles of trail to be built is a “very significant part” of the larger Marquette Greenway Trail, said Mitch Barloga, active transportation manager for the planning commission.
That 60-mile trail linking Chicago to New Buffalo, Michigan, which has taken years of planning and coordination, is coming ever closer to completion. More than 32 miles of it have been built, with other sections in the construction or planning phases.
Bozak noted that when Burns Harbor and Porter complete their sections, it will “close the gap between the western and eastern portions of the Indiana Dunes National Park.”
“That connection will create new opportunities for residents and visitors to experience the beauty of our region,” Bozak said.
The Indiana Dunes National Park this summer is overseeing the construction of a 5.6-mile section of the Marquette Greenway Trail from the Dune Park train station to the Beverly Shores train station on the South Shore Line.
Porter and Burns Harbor are probably the smallest towns to participate in building their sections of the trail, Barloga said.
“It probably hasn’t been the easiest of construction projects and planning projects,” Barloga said.
Porter’s 1.04-mile section starts at the Little Calumet River trailhead off Howe Road and traverses the Mnoke Prairie to Babcock Road. That portion will cost around $2.1 million, with the state paying around $1.6 million and the town picking up the remaining cost. Milestone Contractors has been hired to build the trail.
Porter Town Council President Bill Lopez said that the project wouldn’t be happening without an “outstanding partnership” between all involved, including Burns Harbor and the Indiana Dunes National Park.
Burns Harbor has a much larger construction challenge, as it will probably have the most expensive section of the Marquette Greenway Trail.
The state is contributing $5 million toward the last 0.82-mile section that starts where the trail ends around Stanley Road in Burns Harbor to the Porter town limits at Babcock Road. The town will have to put up more than $3 million for its share of the project.
F.H. Paschen Construction will be building a boardwalk over swampy land, retaining walls and a crossing underneath a Norfolk Southern Railroad bridge over the Little Calumet River.
Dale Brier, the deputy director of community grants and trails with the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, said the state has prioritized trails because research shows that hiking and walking are important to people.
“We know that the trails will bring economic development. They bring a sense of place, they enhance the communities,” Brier said.
Northwest Indiana has seen its network of trails grow exponentially over the years. Warner said that the trail mileage has grown from 13 in 1990 to 205 miles today.
Data compiled by sensors calculated that trails in Northwest Indiana were used at least 1.4 million times last year.
“Trails are one of the most important quality of life investments that a region can make,” Warner said.
Jim Woods is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
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