Hampton embarks on Phase 2 of community trail

Hampton Community Trail’s Phase 2 has begun, with unanimous approval of the engineering proposal during municipal council’s April 27 meeting.

The first phase of the project has been completed, connecting the Rachel Carson Trail at Community Park’s northernmost end with the center of the park, next to its playground. Phase 2 will connect the playground area with the top of the trail in the orchard area of the park.

“Once this first phase and second phase are connected, the residents would have the equivalent of about a mile-and-a-quarter to a mile-and-a-half walking trail,” municipal manager Chris Lochner said.

He said that since the pandemic, municipal officials have been happy to see so many residents using the park to walk, but with no sidewalk, many are forced to walk on the roads. The municipality would like to provide a designated walking area.

The next step in the process is design, which Lochner said should be ready to go out to bid this month.

“Realistically the project will probably get started, if all goes well, sometime in August,” he said, noting that once physical work begins, completion should take no longer than 60 to 90 days. “Contractors under Pennsylvania law are given a minimum of 180 days. I can see them possibly being out of here before Halloween.”

The only portion of the project that may have to wait until 2023 is installing lights along the second part of the trail, according to Lochner, because of potential supply difficulties.

Funds for Phase 2 of the Community Trail are coming from grant money and the municipality. Lochner said Phase 1 of the project was paid for with a grant of $200,000, combined with $300,000 from the township. A grant of $219,000 from the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources will pay for part of the anticipated Phaase 2 cost of around $450,000.

As such, grant money is covering about 40% of the combined cost of the two phases.

For more information, visit hampton-pa.org/366/Community-Park-Trail-Project.