(Photo: City of Gresham)
U.S. Congressman Earl Blumenauer will be on hand this Thursday when the City of Gresham officially opens the newest section of the Gresham-Fairview Trail.
Blumenauer will join a Gresham City Councilor and a Metro Councilor at SE Powell and SW 10th, where a newly finished, 177-foot bridge takes bicycling and walking traffic up and over Powell. The bridge is the first of its kind in Gresham and it creates a crucial connection for the Gresham Fairview Trail.
“Using this new extension the public can now walk, jog, and bike 3.29 miles from Halsey Street at 201st Avenue South to the Springwater Trail,” reads a City of Gresham press release, “The completed bridge and trail section marks another milestone in Gresham’s efforts complete bike lanes and trails that connect the city’s businesses and neighborhoods together, and the city to the region.”
Funding for this bridge comes from several sources, including $800,000 from a federal Transportation Enhancement grant awarded back in March 2007g.
The event will take place from 11 – 11:30 am this Thursday (5/19). More info on City of Gresham’s website or you can watch the little video promo below…
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Mind the cobblestones at the bottom of the hill. Other than that I enjoy this trail. Cant wait till they connect this to Marine Dr.
yay! i’m going to try to be there!
Fairview is great, but two complaints:
#1) Right after that bridge at the bottom of the hill the paving turns from asphalt to some kind of cement tile (i assume due to rainwater build-up). The problem is the gaps in the tile are the perfect size for a 23-25 tire to fall into. There is even a sign showing a dude flying off their bike to warn you.
#2) Crossing at Division is terrible. Put a light here for gods sake!
Improvements to that paver section are already penciled in.
oh, that is excellent news about the grooves. i hope it happens soon!
crossing at division: how about another pedestrian bridge? 😀
This last southern section of the trail is the best yet for the access to nature it provides… to Grant Butte and wetlands as well as to Johnson Creek and the Springwater Corridor. The trail and its alignment will help more people access this area for wildlife viewing while supporting continued environmental restoration and enhancement efforts in the wetlands and on Grant Butte.
i agreed about the paver section… it is hairy going south. good thing my friend warned about it.
Riding this every day. So nice to ride safely away from cars and fumes.
Shame it at 201st and Halsey, just 0.4 miles short of the i84 path that would connect it with Boeing and other big employers. That’s a hairy stretch with a steep grade and no bike lane.
Also, I thought according to the trail plan it was going to follow Old Farm Road instead of going up alongside that residential area with the cobblestones of road bike death.
YES! i don’t understand why it doesn’t connect to the I-84 trail.
also, it is not clear at all how to reach the trail from the springwater corridor trail. at the very least, a sign mentioning its existence would help.
There is a sign now at the intersection with Springwater.
aha! thank you!
Rode it today, and hope it’s going to be my new commute route to a job I’ve interviewed for. It’s a fantastic addition to our MUP network! Keep it up Gresham!
Forgot to complain about the left turn light onto Burnside from Birdsdale/201st on the route not detecting bikes. Grumble grumble..
Rode this stretch a few weeks ago and was thrilled to have a pleasant North-South route through Gresham. Kudos to all who made it happen.