Bend Parks & Rec OKs Brookswood underpass trail

The Bend Park and Recreation Board discussed and approved a trail running beneath Brookswood Boulevard at a new underpass Tuesday evening.

The Central Oregon Irrigation District has been excavating the same area for its canal piping project, one of several such efforts around the region to save water lost to leaks in the old canals.

The park board approved an agreement to work with the irrigation district to create a gravel trail underneath the underpass, providing a safe path for bikes and pedestrians.

The trail would run alongside the pipes and start and end 200 feet from either side of the bridge.

According to the park district’s park planner and project manager, Laura Underhill, the path will be 10 feet wide and ensure that runners, walkers, and bikers have a user-friendly path to use and reduce the risk of car-pedestrian collisions.

“The Central Oregon Irrigation District is working on their piping project, and they want to get it open by April 1 (for the start of irrigation season), so we really need to jump on this opportunity in order to save funds,” Underhill said.

“We can do the work that we have been planning to do for a while, while their contractor is already out there. The district can be fiscally responsible, work with great partnerships, and it’s a safe crossing.”

Underhill said pedestrians are currently going almost a mile out of their way to reach the safe crossing near Blakely Park.

The cost of the path will be around $300,000.

The park board also approved updated athletic field policies and an implementation schedule. The guidelines will help the district accommodate more people and sport teams by revamping how the fields are used.

According to Recreation Director Matt Mercer, scheduling for non-sport field park practices will begin this month.

By next month, the district will implement the permit system with the 2018 season. By May, it wants to develop an affiliate process and agreement.