Southern Indiana Living SeptOct 2013

see the redevelopment and connection to
the Ohio River here in southern Indiana
as an example of how to preserve and
celebrate our culture as we connect to
the Ohio River providing access to everyone,”
she said.
“The unique elements our urban trail
has to ofer is that even though it serves
an urban population it still has a natural
wildlife refuge that you just can’t get close
to in those major metropolitan areas traditionally
associated with redevelopment,”
Graf noted. “Conserving and preserving
areas such as the Falls of the Ohio, historic
neighborhoods and the Loop Island Wetlands
are a part of the plan.”
The plan afects hundreds of thousands
of people on the Indiana side of the
river. The 2012 census put Clark County
at 111,951 residents and Floyd County at
75,283. A combined population of nearly
200,000 people — not to mention the
750,000 from Kentucky’s Jeferson County
— will be afected.
The fnancial numbers also are startling.
The completed segments so far
ring in at $16 million and the projected
cost to complete is still difcult to project
since there are still segments in planning
stages.
“Recreational components such as
planned upgrades to connect Jefersonville’s
Restaurant Row, boat ramps and/
or a marina in New Albany, Clarksville’s
Historic Park near Silver Creek, dog
parks, soccer felds, football felds, basketball
courts, art parks, expanded food
wall murals, a physical ftness training
mile, or bird watching overlooks at the
Loop Island Wetlands are all examples of
visionary elements with no constraints of
price tags, yet,” Graf said.
The long-abandoned Silver Creek bridge
alone has an estimated price tag of $1 million
to be outftted for pedestrian use.
Graf acknowledged that a lot of money
still needs to be found and is trying
From left, New Albany Mayor Jeff Gahan, Anne Banet, Ed Jerdonek and Pat Leist-Stumler
hit the scenic banks of the Ohio River in New Albany with the K&I railroad bridge in the
background. They are working to have it opened to pedestrians.
to steer public perception away from the
notion that the Greenway is a government-only
project.
“It’s been a very huge learning experience
for me in terms of when you work in
private industry versus a public project,”
Graf said. “I wish our private entities that
either own properties close to the Greenway
or on the Greenway would take an
initiative to get involved more.”
She cited Louisville’s Waterfront Park
as an example of the success that can occur
if private corporations become involved.
Bigger picture, Graf said, public and
private entities alike need to realize that
having the Greenway in place will bring
desirable types of people to the area.
More trail users equal more eyes and
therefore less crime, more money spent
in local restaurants, more ftness enthusiasts
leading to a healthier population,
a boosted community morale and appreciation
for its history, increased attendance
at public events and concerts
and an increase in surrounding property
values.
She noted that people who visit trails
like the Greenway “tend to be more on
the upper scale of learning and on the upper
scale of earning.”
“For a sustainable community, you
need the elderly, the young families,
middle age, all living in the same area,
and that’s what trails tend to bring in,”
she concluded. •
For more information on the Greenway
and how to get involved, visit ohiorivergreenway.org.
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