Little Menomonee River Parkway Will Become a Walking and Biking Trail – Project Begins!
(By Vanessa Swales – Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)
The Milwaukee County Parks Department is set to turn Little Menomonee River Parkway road on the county’s northwest side into a walking and biking trail.
A groundbreaking ceremony this week marked the county’s efforts to increase residents’ access to recreational and green spaces as well as the agency’s goal of adding 10 miles of new trails between 2024 and 2026.
“When we construct new trails, we are supporting healthy lifestyles, neighborhood development, and public safety,” County Executive David Crowley said in a statement.
The American Rescue Plan Act-funded project will convert a roughly one-mile stretch of the parkway — from Leon Terrace Avenue to West Appleton Avenue — into a hard-surface pedestrian and biking trail that also aims to improve user safety and reduce reckless driving.
Construction is expected to continue through 2025.
“Residents in this northwest corner of Milwaukee have long hoped for improvements that would better preserve our natural areas and action addressing reckless driving, dumping, and pathways dangerous to bicyclists,” County Board Supervisor Deanna Alexander, whose district includes the parkway, said in a statement. “I look forward to the finished outcomes that will help enhance neighborhood value and the enjoyment of our parks spaces here for decades to come.”
In recent years, the parkway has been one of the areas most affected by illegal dumping. In an effort to reduce such activity, the parks department landed on the idea of the road-to-trail conversion.
It is also anticipated the project would save the county about $12,000 in maintenance and contribute to a more cost-effective future for the county as it aims for more fiscal responsibility.
More information about the project can be found on the Parks Department website here: https://www.mkecountyparks.org/little-menomonee-river-parkway-trail-conversion?fbclid=IwY2xjawGHlZxleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHWTQ9q8fVvEeRugeBy16q6e1SlLcx1W5DeCgkkqnJzYDWrCh8ZIy6Jys_A_aem_cTaUKren5iNlpC8ltca_2Q