After wet weather caused construction setbacks for the Green Valley State Park trail extension last summer, a rainy spring has caused more delays this year.
Alan Carr, park ranger at Green Valley State Park, said the rain has kept workers from pouring any new trail this spring, although they have been able to do some work on grading and pouring culverts.
“The good news is, when the weather’s decent they’re out there working,” he said. “The bad news is it’s not been very decent.”
Carr said he could see the completion date edging into the fall of this year, which would be a year later than originally anticipated. After the concrete is poured, he said there is additional work finishing and seeding the shoulders. Carr said the crew could possibly pour 800 to 1,000 feet of concrete a day once the ground isn't wet.
“We certainly hope there’ll be a big enough break sometime this season,” he said. “If we get into a dryer period where it only rains once and awhile, they could go pretty fast.”
When complete, the extension will stretch nearly three and one-half miles, connecting McKinley Park to the campgrounds at Green Valley Lake. About 3,000 feet of the trail was poured last year.