The sun broke through and fog lifted Tuesday morning as community partners gathered to celebrate the official dedication of Arkansas City’s new two-mile Hike & Bike Trail extension. The added stretch connects directly to the existing route, creating a loop of roughly four-point-two miles.
The City of Arkansas City and the Arkansas City Area Chamber of Commerce hosted a ribbon-cutting Nov. 25 at La Hacienda South LLC. City Commissioner Diana Spielman — who owns the restaurant — cut the ribbon. Spielman has been a vocal supporter of the trail and has encouraged nearby businesses and neighborhoods to link into it. She also worked with the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas Pathways to a Healthy Kansas program, with assistance from RISE Cowley, to secure grant funding for new amenities.
Through the program’s Pathways III “Food Retail” grant package, the site added a bike rack, a bench, a water tower, and a refrigerator for fresh produce. The improvements were designed to connect directly to the trail and enhance public access and overall community health.
The extension runs from Paris Park Pool to West Lincoln Avenue and continues to the Cowley College Sports Complex, strengthening the connection among several major recreation areas.
In June, city commissioners approved an updated funding agreement with the Kansas Department of Transportation for Phase Two of the project — a revision that ultimately saved the city more than three hundred forty-one thousand dollars. The original 2021 agreement capped federal funding and required the city to cover costs above that limit in addition to a 20 percent match. The updated agreement removed the cap, allowing KDOT to fund 80 percent of all construction and construction-engineering costs.
