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Plans are advancing for the first section of a larger pedestrian and bike trail that would fill a gap between the Kingston and Forty Fort reaches of the Wyoming Valley Levee along the Susquehanna River.
				Proposals are due Monday from engineers interested in designing the first path from Turner Street in Forty Fort to Church Street in Kingston, which will close a &ldquo;substantial&rdquo; portion of the distance between the two, said Forty Fort Mayor Andy Tuzinski.
				This first section will eliminate the need for Forty Fort residents to cross busy streets when jogging, biking and walking to the popular levee trail in Kingston, the mayor said.
				While a project feasibility study was completed in 2018, the path layout is &ldquo;still very much in the preliminary phase,&rdquo; he said.
				&ldquo;I live on River Street, and I see first-hand how many people are walking and using bikes,&rdquo; Tuzinski said. &ldquo;This will make a real nice environment for everyone.&rdquo;
				The trail also will help Forty Fort Police better reach that area for patrolling and improve levee maintenance access for the Luzerne County Flood Protection Authority, which oversees the flood control system along the Susquehanna, he said.
				The pathway will be 10 feet wide, or about 2 feet more than usual, to allow room for solar units officials eventually want to install to add lighting, he said.
				Forty Fort has received two state grants totaling $1.1 million to start the project, and officials are seeking additional funding, he said.
				Attempting to remove politics from the engineer selection decision, the Forty Fort manager will redact identifying information and assign a letter code to each bid respondent, he said.
				An outside committee that includes a civil engineer with flood protection experience will review the non-identifying proposals and make a recommendation to borough officials, Tuzinski said.
				&ldquo;Our biggest concern as a borough is that we have someone qualified and experienced doing these projects,&rdquo; he said.
				In addition to designing the route, the engineer must work with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to secure necessary approval, Tuzinski said.
				He expects the same engineering firm will handle additional phases of the project that cannot proceed until more funding is secured.
				Tuzinski recently briefed the county Flood Protection Authority on the status of the project because much of the trail will fall within the authority&rsquo;s levee system right-of-way.
				The trail also will pass through Pennsylvania Department of Transportation property.
				Down the road, as more funding is secured, the proposed plan includes another path along River Street in Forty Fort and a parking area at the end of River Street on land &ldquo;generously supplied&rdquo; by a local family, he said.
				&ldquo;Our eventual goal is to create an uninterrupted path from Edwardsville to Wyoming, Tuzinski said, noting the project will open up access for environmental education along the river. &ldquo;This is going to be a great thing.&rdquo;
				State Rep. Aaron Kaufer, R-Kingston, who has been heavily involved in pushing for the trail, also participated in the recent flood authority briefing.
				&ldquo;This has been a long time coming and years in the making,&rdquo; Kaufer told the authority.
				Tuzinski said construction of the first trail section won&rsquo;t be bid out until the flood authority approves the final design.
				Christopher Belleman, the flood authority&rsquo;s executive director, said he supports the project largely because users of the popular trail atop the levee would not be forced to navigate busy streets for access.
				The authority also will require a memorandum of understanding to ensure the borough handles maintenance and security of the trail, Belleman said.
				&ldquo;That burden can&rsquo;t fall on the shoulders of the authority. We think it&rsquo;s a great project, but we just have to make sure flood protection is not compromised,&rdquo; Belleman said.
				Kaufer said he would never do anything to jeopardize the levee.
				&ldquo;Thank God the levee was there in 2011, or the entire valley would be devastated,&rdquo; Kaufer told the authority. &ldquo;We would not impact that.&rdquo;

Kingston-Forty Fort trail connection plan advancing