Length of Upper Saucon’s Rail Trail Will Depend on Developer’s Recreation Fee

Will $450,000 be enough to extend the Upper Saucon Rail Trail to the Coopersburg line at Landis Street?

At Monday's supervisors meeting, some said yes and others said they weren't sure.

The money will come from the developer of the Brinley Court project in lieu of a recreation fee.

While the supervisors said they would prefer to extend the trail to the Coopersburg line, the ultimate reach will depend on how far the $450,000 will take it.

"Best-case scenario, we'd like to go right up to our township line," said supervisors chairman Miro Gutzmirtl. "That has to do also with our funding."

"We don't have 100 percent firm numbers," township manager Tom Beil said in response to questions about how far the money would go. "We're at least getting to Memorial Park."

The supervisors considered three options on where to end the trail, deciding to try for Landis Street. The others were Living Memorial Park and Lutron Electronics.

Phase One of the trail cost $350,000, and as township engineer Dennis Harman pointed out, "that's with a very expensive crossing." He added, "I think we can make it all the way [to Landis Street]."

Beil said the latest estimate the township received for Phase Two through open bidding was $600,000.

Part of Monday's discussion centered on Coopersburg's portion of the trail. "Their [Coopersburg Council] plan is to pick up from Landis Street and take it down to Station Avenue," said Beil, who spoke with council on May 24. "From Station Avenue you can pick up the existing sidewalk network."

Coopersburg's portion of the trail was originally planned to go farther, though council has not finalized the trail's final course. Still, the supervisors questioned why Coopersburg would stop short on its section of the trail.

"The more miles you can put on it the better the trail," Gutzmirtl said of the possible 700-to-800-foot stretch of the Coopersburg trail. "Encourage them to do the most they can to bring it to our township line," he told Beil.

"They're not opposed to doing that section," Beil said. "They just don't have the funding to do it right now. That is the impression I got."

The supervisors also approved the construction of a 7-foot-tall privacy fence along a section of the trail just south of Station Avenue where the trail was deemed too close to nearby homes. They also decided to construct a trail head along Station Avenue that would allow for 10 parking spaces.