Southern Indiana Living SeptOct 2013

Standing on the peaceful banks of the Ohio River in New Albany,
it is hard to imagine that there are several million people
living less than 10 miles away.
“I just want the river to be appreciated,” said Ohio River
Greenway Commission Member Anne Banet. “My father’s
always been a river buf and when he died he extracted a
promise from me to do something with the river. And when
this commission vacancy came up I said I’d like to do that,
and for years I’ve been doing that. I love it and I love what
we’ve been able to accomplish.”
Banet is part of the commission, that was founded in 1993,
working to promote the Ohio River Greenway – a multi-use
path that will ultimately wind over three bridges and through
parks along trails that span two counties, three towns, the
Ohio River, Silver Creek and Loop Island Wetlands. Such a
construction is no small task but Banet and many others like
her were raised in the area and want nothing more than to
share the Ohio River and surrounding gems with others.
“I love the proximity of the river and making it possible for
people from the city to come down
here and be close to the river and appreciate
it,” she refected.
The river speaks to locals in a
way that can only be understood
by those who were raised on it, but
can be appreciated by all who are
looking for a place to get away from
the demands of daily life, families
looking for a safe place to recreate,
ftness bufs needing a trail to train
on, senior citizens looking for a
good place to walk, and dog walkers
whose pooches are tired of the
neighborhood sidewalks.
Sam Gwin, a native of Clarksville, loves the trail completed
so far and is anxious to see the rest of it done. A commission
member and former Clarksville town attorney, he has been
involved with the Greenway project for a long time since he
used to work on land agreements for the city.
“I played as a child in the areas that are going to be part of
the Greenway,” he said. “I used to go down and jump in the
river when I wasn’t supposed to, so I’m sort of familiar with
things even like the fossil beds which are just of the Greenway.
We just thought they were rocks.”
Clarksville’s trail ofers peaceful waterfront views of the
Ohio River and passes George Rogers Clark homestead, Falls
of the Ohio State Park, and an ice cream shop with bicycle
rentals. The next phase in Clarksville will involve crossing
the old Silver Creek railroad bridge and connecting with
New Albany’s trail at the Loop Island Wetlands.
“I think probably frst of all it’s a recreational opportunity
to walk and see nature at the same time, and it’s good because
it’s linked with parks like Ashland Park in Clarksville,”
Gwin said. “I’ve noticed in going down there - a lot of people
are coming out and using that park now and they’re using
the Greenway.”
His favorite time of year to visit is the fall when the trees
surrounding the trail are alive with color. He imagines the day
when the Ohio River Greenway connects all the way to Kentucky
and continues on the Bluegrass State’s side of the river.
Doing it right
The process of making that happen has been slow and will
continue to be.
September/October 2013 • 42
“I drove across the K&I
years and years ago, so
I would love to be able to
walk across it. I would like
to see this whole area
become a destination.”
-Jim McCoskey
In addition to the river’s unique fossil beds at the Falls of
the Ohio, the area has a fragile river bank and also is home
to many Native American artifacts and history surrounding
George Rogers Clark and early settlements. Countless environmental,
ecological and archaeological studies have taken
place for a trail like this to be completed.
The planned multi-use path will total 7.5 miles in length,
with 3.84 miles completed so far.
Commission Member Jim McCoskey, who has a condo
overlooking Silver Creek, said he is amazed at how long it
takes. With endless enthusiasm, McCoskey has a great vision
for who will enjoy using the trail - everyone. At 70 and extremely
active, he said he hopes to live to see the day when
the Greenway is complete, including acquiring the K&I
bridge in New Albany to complete the loop with Kentucky.
The Big Four Bridge in Jefersonville is nearly completed
on the east end of the loop, but the Greenway commission
is still seeking permission from the freight company Norfolk
Southern to acquire rights to use the western connection, the
K&I Bridge, which allowed cars as recently
as 1980. Trains still use it today
and the structure is already in place for
bicycle/pedestrian use.
“I drove across the K&I years and
years ago, so I would love to be able
to walk across it,” McCoskey said. “I
would like to see this whole area become
a destination.”
Creating destinations takes time, and
McCoskey — despite his contagious
optimism — said in his opinion government
is the biggest thing holding the
project back.
“You’ve got all of these hoops you have to go through,” he
said. “It has really opened my eyes just in the two years I’ve
been on the commission to see how slow government moves.
You have the EPA, the XYZ and the ABC and INDOT — that
has kind of set me back a little bit, but I’ve begun to accept it.”
Funding a multi-million dollar project also is not easy. He
described it as two or three steps forward and one or two
steps back.
There also are land usage agreements to hurdle and private
businesses to work around along with the countless government
studies required.
A great payof
The payof will be great when the trail is done.
“I think number one it’s a quality of life factor,” said former
New Albany mayor (2000-04) Regina Overton, also a
commission member. “There are things that people look at
when they want to relocate to a community; one being your
schools, then your housing and your recreational. And this
is the by far the most ambitious recreational project that I’ve
seen in our area. It’s wonderful. When you build a better
neighborhood, you build recreation ... This is a project that I
frmly believe in.”
Overton sees it as an opportunity to build stronger ties between
New Albany, Jefersonville and Clarksville. She imagines
starting on the trail in New Albany, taking a scenic bike
ride through Clarksville with a visit to one of its parks and
fnishing with dinner on the waterfront in Jefersonville.
Clarksville Town Council President and Commission
Member Bob Polston agrees that the trail will serve as a new
conduit through the communities and a revenue stream. He