Town Council to Hold Public Hearing on Lighting Stretch of W&OD Trail Tuesday

The Herndon Town Council will hold a public hearing during its meeting Tuesday night about adding lighting to a stretch of the W&OD trail that passes through Herndon.

During the meeting, the Council will solicit comments from residents, and will then vote on whether or not to approve the project, which has been included in the Town's Capital Improvement Project (CIP) fund for fiscal years 2014-2019.

The Council has been discussing the proposed lighting project since the start of summer, and recently held a work session to discuss details earlier this month.

Mayor Lisa Merkel said that, as the trail has grown in popularity and usage over the years, lighting is an improvement the Town has wanted to make for a while.

"We have more and more events in downtown, and people are using the bike trail even all the way from Reston," she said. "So people can feel more comfortable coming all the way down and not having to use their cars."

The lighted stretch of trail the Council is voting this week on lighting first would extend from Ferndale Avenue to Van Buren Street, excluding the pedestrian bridge and the section of the trail between Elden and Station streets. 

The 39 installed lights would illuminate approximately 3,200 feet of the 2.4-mile section of the W&OD trail that is located within the Town of Herndon. Above-ground transformers will be installed, and wiring will run underground from the transformers to the light posts, and require temporary trenching. 

Merkel said the light should not extend onto any residents' property. She also pointed out this section of trail is mostly businesses, except for one townhouse development near the stretch closest to the post office.

"And we've heard from a lot of those residents, and they're very excited about it," she added.

A potential future phase of the project would install light posts from Ferndale Avenue to Crestview Drive, excluding the pedestrian bridge within that section. This potential second phase would require the installation of additional light posts and above-ground transformers as needed, and also necessitate underground wiring. This work would result in an additional 2,200 feet of illuminated trail. 
  
Selected light fixtures and additional details will be discussed at Tuesday night's meeting in a presentation by the engineering consultants for the project. 

To help cover costs of the project, the town has received a matching grant from the Commonwealth of Virginia's Department of Conservation and Recreation.

Merkel explained that part of why they are lighting the stretch in phases is so they can qualify with more grants, since the trail is part of the Northern Virginia Park Authority. She added that the Park Authority is excited about the lighting project, and has even granted extended hours for the use of the trail once it is lit.

The Town Council meeting will take place at 7 p.m. in the Council Chambers in the Muncipal Center at 777 Lynn Street. The public is welcome to attend and address the council with comments during the public hearing portion.

Anyone who wishes to comment on the project but can't attend Tuesday night's public hearing can e-mail comments to town.clerk@herndon-va.gov by 4 p.m. Tuesday in order to be taken into consideration before the vote.


TELL US - What do you think of the proposed lighting for the W&OD trail? Have you, or will you, make comments to the town with thoughts on it? Tell us in the comments below.

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