It's Not A Cristo - It's Lanie Fleisher Chester Creek Bike Trail Construction Closure

I noticed - how could I not - the orange material on the edge of the bike trail as I rode home yesterday from the LIO.  It looked like pretty nice material, but it didn't really look like a Christo art installation.

Yesterday on the way home there were some construction folks so I asked.

They are, if I understood this right, going to take out the old bike trail and completely redo it with jogging paths along the sides.  The trail certainly could use some repairs, but I couldn't help but think that they would close down the major streets completely for repairs all summer, and the Chester Creek bike trail is the Seward Highway of bike trails in Anchorage.  He said there'd be detour signs and routes.  We'll see.

I asked how long it would take.  He's got 70 days he said.  That's most of the summer here in Anchorage.  They'll do it in sections, he told me, so it won't all be closed at once.  It would be nice if they did this continuously - one short section per summer - and when they were done after, say ten years, they'd start over to keep the trail in good shape.  But I guess securing money over time like that isn't likely.

Anyway, I understood that the portion that's got the curtains - Maplewood west to near the Juneau Street spur - will be shut down on Tuesday for work to begin.  Actually, probably from Lake Otis west. 

I didn't know anything about this, but I found the plans online.  It seems they sent out notices to people who live along the trail.  But lots of folks use the trail who don't live along them.  Signs along the trail might be a good way to let cyclists, runners, and other trail users know about the planning phases.

Here's a link to the written documentation.  It's not at all clear which parts they will do when.

Here's a link to the maps documentation.  Again, not terribly clear about timing.

This is a huge file, so you can click on it and see it much bigger

Phase 1 was completed last summer.  It's beyond my regular routes, so I didn't notice.  

The whole project this summer goes from Arctic to the Arc (near Debarr).  The section near the Arc really, really needs to be repaired.  The roots damage there is horrendous.  And where I was, there are regular big bumps where the asphalt has contoured around pipes underneath.