Next phase of EPCAL bike trail to begin with groundbreaking Friday
Completion of the Enterprise Park at Calverton bike trail — officially called the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Trial — will begin Monday, June 11 and will be officially kicked off with a groundbreaking ceremony at 9:30 a.m. Friday, according to Councilwoman Jodi Giglio, who has been a strong supporter of the project.
The Riverhead Town Board approved a resolution Tuesday to transfer $200,000 in county aid and $500,000 in state aid into the parks improvement budget, clearing the way for work to begin.
“We’ve been talking about this for eight years now,” Ms. Giglio said, recounting the many hurdles the project has faced.
The idea for the bike trail goes back to January 2006, when Wading River resident Don Hawkins wrote a letter to the Town Board saying that “EPCAL represents a golden opportunity for the town to construct a network of family-oriented recreation bike-ways,” according to former Councilman George Bartunek, who, like Mr. Hawkins, is a member of the town’s alternative transportation advisory committee.
About three miles of the track, which is located on the former Grumman security perimeter, was paved in 2008 using $100,000 in state grants.
It is used by bikers, walkers, runners, and for other non-motorized activities.
The plans are to pave an additional four miles, ultimately encircling the EPCAL property. The town has received more than $800,000 in state and county grants for the project.
