NANTY GLO, Pa. - Representatives of local and state organizations gathered Monday to celebrate the completion of the first phase of the last section of the largest rail-trail loop on the East Coast.
They huddled at a ribbon-cutting ceremony under the new Church Street box culvert near the North Street trailhead of the Ghost Town Trail.
The cast-in-place concrete overpass provided shelter from the elements as speakers touted the benefits of outdoor recreation in the area and what finishing the project represents for the region.
"Watching the whole thing come together was so exciting," Cambria County Conservation and Recreation Authority Executive Director Cliff Kitner said.
He said the project couldn't have gone any better from its start in September to its completion by the middle of November.
This phase of the project included construction of roughly half a mile of trail and installation of the box culvert under the roadway. The cost totaled about $900,000.
Engineering services were provided by Keller Engineers Inc., and Cottle's Asphalt Maintenance Inc. carried out the work. Kitner credited both companies for a job well done.
"The outdoor industry contributed $19 billion to Pennsylvania in past year, a 10% increase since 2022," he noted regarding data from U.S. Bureau Economic Analysis.
A highlight is using rocks from former Red Mill Bridge abutment lining path leading to/from Church Street structure; inside tunnel, concrete resembles those stones.
"We're winning here in Cambria County," Cambria County Commissioner Thomas Chernisky said, praising CCCRA's work and outdoor recreation expansion.
Other speakers included state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Regional Adviser Lindsay Baer; Cambria County Commissioners Scott Hunt and Keith Rager; state Rep. Jim Rigby, R-Ferndale; state Sen. Wayne Langerholc, R-Richland Township; and CCCRA Board President Thomas Kakabar.
Langerholc remarked that "Cambria County is best when it comes to these projects" while pledging continued support for maintenance funding with examples like a $100,000 grant delivered to CCCRA in October.
The next phase includes coal refuse remediation work similar construction first phase final 1 1/2 miles east toward Nanty Glo meeting Ghost Town Trail's C&I Extension from Ebensburg.