A planned new riverwalk in North Jefferson City will use some concrete on a portion of the path, but an opponent to the project says any concrete would destroy the natural surroundings.
The plan to develop a riverwalk on the north side of the Missouri River, from the end of the pedestrian bridge through the Noren Access and to Turkey Creek, was put forward by Alan Mudd through a Jefferson City Area Chamber of Commerce initiative called the Big Idea Sharing network.
The plan involves 356 feet of a 10-foot concrete trail in the first phase, with a future phase planned to extend the trail to Turkey Creek, though the extension would not be concrete. Bill Lockwood, director of the Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department, said the concrete would only go to the first primitive campsite along the trail. After that, he said, the path would be about 6 feet wide and likely made of chat, which is ground limestone.
The planned trail will improve an already-existing natural trail Mudd has said can be difficult to walk on in inclement weather.
Joe Wilson, who is known to many for his work at the Noren Access in North Jefferson City, has been a vocal opponent of the planned project, saying that putting concrete on a nature trail will disturb the environment. At a Parks and Recreation Commission meeting last week, he asked an environmental impact study be done to determine if a concrete path would disrupt the "buffer zone" the area provides when the river rises out of its banks and floods the nearby areas. He also asked each commissioner walk the trail as is before making any decisions.
"It's nature down there, people," Wilson said to the commission. "You need to go over there and feel it. ... Don't mess with nature."
Lockwood said the commission actually endorsed and approved the project in July 2014.
At the commission meeting, Norm Stucky, a former official with the Missouri Department of Conservation, said Wilson's opposition is nothing new.
"This is all deja vu," Stucky said. "(Wilson) fought the Department of Conservation tooth and nail on constructing that (Noren) access there. I really, really would urge the Parks and Recreation (Commission) to proceed post-haste with this plan. It needs to happen."
The access was completed in 2000, and Wilson said he never fought anyone over the access or its placement, adding he wasn't aware of its existence until about 10 years ago. Wilson called Stucky's comments "a bald-faced lie."
Lockwood said the plan is not set in stone and still largely conceptual, even noting the width of the concrete portion could be less than 10 feet. He also noted all the necessary work has been done to ensure any additional concrete would not affect the area in case of flooding and has been approved by the city's staff engineer responsible for floodplain management, Don Fontana.
Lockwood said the plan has been vetted through many people and Wilson simply has a different vision for the area than they do.
Wilson said others have indicated they would be willing to compromise for his support of the project, but he sees no possible compromise when the plan involves concrete.
"I'd love the cooperation, but don't fix it unless it's broke," Wilson said of the Noren Access. "There's no compromise. No concrete."
The first phase of the project is expected to cost $30,000, and Lockwood said they have collected about $10,500 in donations so far. He said the project may begin in the next couple of weeks, but that is very tentative.