BACKGROUND: THE 2015 MASTER PLAN The vision for a trail was born out of citizen concern over unsafe pedestrian conditions along Route 9D and a sense of duty to find a solution before people were hurt. Conversations over coffee eventually grew into a coalition with a range of project partners including local municipalities, local and regional non-profits, Metro-North Railroad, and various state agencies. This group became the steering committee that pooled funds and hired a consultant to complete a master planning process for the Hudson Highlands Fjord Trail (Fjord Trail). The purpose of the initial Master Plan study, as it was conceived at the time, was to evaluate the feasibility of creating a trail linking the Cold Spring and Beacon train stations. The study identified and evaluated various route alternatives based on project goals and public input, along with technical and cost feasibility. This analysis and public input culminated in a preferred alignment for the proposed Hudson Highlands Fjord Trail (Fjord Trail or Trail) as an accessible shared-use trail connecting the Village of Cold Spring, in Putnam County, to the City of Beacon, in Dutchess County. The Preliminary Draft Master Plan for the Hudson Highlands Fjord Trail (Preliminary Draft Master Plan) was completed and endorsed by all four communities in 2015. The Master Plan established that: “The goal of the project is to transform a portion of the State Route 9D/Metro-North Hudson Line corridor in the heart of Hudson Highlands State Park between the Village of Cold Spring and City of Beacon from a high speed thoroughfare into a multi-use, user-friendly recreational, tourism-oriented connection that provides people with a stronger visual and physical connection with the Hudson River.” The 2015 Master Plan also identified key goals that served as parameters to assess the feasibility and desirability of various proposed route alternatives: Safety: Lack of pedestrian, hiker and cyclist safety was the initial issue that led to the grassroots support for the trail. It is necessary to address traffic safety concerns along this portion of State Route 9D, where visitors currently park to access the trailheads, by calming traffic and implementing pedestrian safety measures. Recreation: Creation of this trail is an opportunity to provide a new recreational amenity for the region accessible to a broader population than just hikers. This project could transform the character of this stretch of Route 9D from that of a dangerous high-speed thoroughfare into a multi- modal recreational corridor that acknowledges the diverse needs of the motorists, pedestrians and cyclists using it. ADA access was sought where possible to open this unique area to people with disabilities, families with young children and the aging population. A trail located here would ultimately connect into a regional greenway and trail network, as well as the broader Hudson River Greenway, to create a multi-modal link between adjacent recreational opportunities and natural assets that people of all physical abilities could use. Highlight & retain natural beauty, ecology and environment: Creating a continuous off-road, multi-use trail that provides visual and physical connection to the Hudson River and surrounding streams and woodlands is a major focus, given the strong public support for a such a trail. The design concepts developed are based on analysis of critical areas of environmental, cultural and archaeological significance, and have been developed to minimize environmental impacts during construction, to the extent possible, while maximizing exposure to natural surroundings and views. Economic development: Encouraging non- motorized travel between Cold Spring and Beacon and their tourism-based destinations is a major goal that would be realized as a by-product of this trail. Once built, a continuous trail will highlight assets of these two communities as well as Hudson Highlands State Park Preserve. Therefore, unless there are specific economic development benefits for a given route segment, this goal is not analyzed in detail for each segment. Rather, it is regarded as a strong reason in support of implementing the entire trail route. Construction feasibility: Evaluating the desirability of various route alternatives revealed a serious of practical issues at the forefront of the analysis. These include political jurisdiction, property ownership, environmental constraints, engineering feasibility, construction issues, project cost, and political and public support. HUDSON HIGHLANDS FJORD TRAIL | MASTER PLAN 27 DRAFT
