Columbus Mayor Robert Smith headlined a group that spoke Tuesday to the Columbus Rotary Club at Lion Hills about the planned Riverwalk extension to Columbus Air Force Base.
Smith, along with city engineer Kevin Stafford and CAFB Public Affairs Director Sonic Johnson, updated Rotarians on the status and immediate plans for the planned $25 million project and answer any questions.
The state legislature included $2.25 million in its general obligation bond package this year to extend the walking track 14 miles to connect with the CAFB entrance at Highway 373. Rep. Jeff Smith (R-Columbus), who sponsored the House bill for the Riverwalk extension, had hoped to either secure $25 million over five years or at least secure the first $5 million for the project, which would connect to the existing 2.2-mile Riverwalk and run through the Lock and Dam area and Dewayne Hayes Park. The project also includes an amphitheatre near the Tombigbee River bridge to be named in memory of late state Sen. Terry Brown.
“I’m happy and thankful to get the $2.25 million we got,” Mayor Smith told Rotarians on Tuesday. “I hope we continue to get funding.”
Though both Rep. Smith and Mayor Smith initially said the project would include three separate tracks — one each for walking, jogging and running — Stafford said on Tuesday there would only be one track, 8-10 feet wide, that could be used for all three purposes.
The mayor also indicated previously that the path would include workout stations every two miles. On Tuesday, though, he said those would be installed “as needed.”
Master plan in the works
The city and CAFB are now working with the Corps of Engineers on a master plan for the extension, according to the mayor. Stafford said the city would hold a public meeting in advance of construction, and the $2.25 million from the state would cover planning, design, extending the trail under the Tombigbee bridge to the end of Mississippi Department of Transportation right-of-way and beginning work on the amphitheatre.
Both the mayor and Stafford indicated Tuesday that the property needed to complete the project includes public and private right-of-way, much of which belongs to the Corps of Engineers. Stafford said Weyerhaeuser had agreed, in principle, to allow the trail to cross its property along the route. But if other private property owners didn’t want to sell easements for the planned path, there were other options using public right-of-way to see the project through.
“Some people we’ve talked to want the trail on their property because they understand the economic impact of something like that,” Stafford told the Dispatch after the Rotary meeting. “Others, we know, don’t want it. We understand and respect their property rights, and the city, I don’t think, is prepared to use eminent domain for a project like this.”
CAFB partnered with the city on pursuing the Riverwalk extension due to the Defense Base Closure and Realignment Commission identifying quality of life as one of the base’s critical deficiencies. Also, last July, a study published in the Air Force Times delivered a body blow to CAFB, ranking it the third-worst base for an airman to be assigned.
With the trail, Mayor Smith said CAFB personnel and their families would have immediate access to outdoor exercise facilities, which in turn would increase their quality of life. Also, he noted the potential economic and tourism impact expected from having a 16.2-mile multi-use path along the waterway.
Mayor: ‘Without CAFB…we’d be a ghost town’
Smith said the base itself already adds $250 million annually to the local economy, including employment that makes up a $144 million annual payroll. Therefore, he said protecting the base meant protecting the city and county at large.
“Without Columbus Air Force Base, whether you live in the city or the county, we’d be like one of those ghost towns you see around Mississippi,” Smith told the Rotary Club.
Johnson, during his turn with the microphone Tuesday at Rotary, commended the project on two fronts. First, he said it would connect “two gems” along the water way — meaning the Lock and Dam and Dewayne Hayes Park — and it would also provide a safer area for CAFB personnel to walk, jog and bike. Johnson also urged patience as the project takes shape.
“This is also a safety issue,” Johnson said. “Not being from here, you guys have small roads and big ditches … this is a great project. With the first sprinkle of money, you’ve got to be patient. A lot of due diligence goes into something like this.”
Zack Plair is the managing editor for The Dispatch.
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