Work on the Levee Trail has begun as City of Noblesville and Hamilton County Parks and Recreation officials broke ground on the new amenity. The project continues to increase Noblesville’s trail availability and connectivity.
The Levee Trail adds 1.4 miles of multi-use asphalt on the east side of Morse Reservoir running from Morse Park and Beach north along the reservoir to Carrigan Road. A portion of this trail will run next to and on top of the levee from Dakota Drive to Carrigan Road.
“This trail is especially important as it connects at least 7,000 northern Noblesville residents to existing trails leading to downtown,” said Mayor John Ditslear. “It also accomplishes one of the goals of the Noblesville NOW Capital Improvement Plan to improve pedestrian infrastructure.”
An agreement with Citizens Energy has allowed this project to be built on its property. The project will cost approximately $600,000 and includes an 8-foot-wide trail beside the levee and a 10-foot-wide path on top.
The Levee Trail is a collaboration between the City of Noblesville and Hamilton County Parks and Recreation (HCPR). It is the second trail project connecting residents to a county park – the first being the White River Greenway Trail and Potter’s Bridge Park.
“The addition of the Levee Trail that includes Morse Park will provide enhanced access and use of the park, as well as furthering the connectivity of the park to more of the City of Noblesville and the Town of Cicero,” said HCPR Director Al Patterson. “From a purely parks and recreation standpoint, it is a well-documented fact that trails and park use improve the physical and mental health of a community.”
Prior to this project, the city rehabilitated 2,500 linear feet of sidewalk and trail, including replacing old sidewalk with a new segment of trail along 196th Street from Hague Road to Morse Park and Beach in 2016. The project also removed an outdated bridge crossing with and a new crossing to accommodate a full trail. This project effectively connected an existing trail network with Forest Park and Downtown Noblesville to Morse Beach and Park.
Noblesville has three major trail projects taking place in 2019 – Levee Trail, Midland Trace Trail Phase III and Riverwalk Phase IV – and will surpass 100 total miles of trail in the city this summer.
For more information on Hamilton County Parks, please click here or call 317-770-4400.