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Hamilton asks city council to consider road closure in Lower Cascades Park

By Lucas Gonzalez

Posted March 7, 2023

A photo looking north on Old State Road 37 just south of Lower Cascades Park in Bloomington.

Hamilton would like to see the 0.6-mile stretch of road in Bloomington’s oldest park instead used as a pedestrian and bicycle trail. (Bente Bouthier, WFIU/WTIU News)

Correction: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated the results of a survey related to the closure.

Bloomington Mayor John Hamilton wants members of city council to consider permanently closing the part of Old State Road 37 that runs through Lower Cascades Park to drivers.

Andrew Krebbs, Hamilton’s communications director, said the mayor has no formal proposal but plans to get the matter before the council later this year.

Hamilton would like to see the 0.6-mile stretch of road in Bloomington’s oldest park instead used as a pedestrian and bicycle trail. Krebb said parking and vehicular access would still be allowed, just not through traffic on the entire road.

Background: City Recommends Reopening Road Through Lower Cascades Park To Motorists

“Mayor Hamilton has been in favor of closing Cascades for a trail since the beginning,” Krebbs told WFIU/WTIU News. “He believes (city) council should host a public process to determine the long-term use either as a road or as a trail.”

Hamilton’s request goes against a 2021 recommendation by the Board of Park Commissioners to reopen the road for motorists following a 15-month pilot study to examine the effects of temporarily restricting it.

Adam Wason, the city’s public works director, has said the recommendation was driven by input from residents with mobility challenges who said the closure limited their access to the park.

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Survey results on the project were mixed. Of nearly 460 park visitors surveyed, 52% said they'd want the road kept as a multi-use trail while 33% said they were opposed to the idea. However, results also showed that when asked to choose between three options: closing one, both or no lanes to traffic, leaving both lanes open proved the most popular.

Nearly 70% said they arrived by vehicle while about 30% said they walked or bicycled.

A fall 2020 survey showed that of 394 respondents, 62% said they visited the park less than before the pilot study while 12% said they visited more often.

Krebbs noted that the survey was conducted when park usage was at its peak due to lockdowns related to the COVID-19 pandemic. He said the city council would likely consider those survey results if they were to take up the matter for a vote.

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“It expands our trail system in the city’s oldest park — and a beloved park — and builds upon access for pedestrians and cyclists and gets away from vehicle-centric areas in the city,” Krebbs said. “But ultimately, if the community and the council decide that’s not what we want to do, then (Hamilton) is in favor of that and he understands that there’s opinions on both sides, even if he is in favor of it.”

The study began in March 2020 and was originally scheduled to last for six months. It was extended through June 2021 to collect more data, according to the city. It was funded by the sale of $10 million in Bicentennial Bonds approved by city council.

Lower Cascades Park is in Bloomington’s second district, which is represented by city council member Sue Sgambelluri. Sgambelluri was not immediately available for comment.

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