Construction could start in summer to extend Modesto’s Virginia Corridor Trailway
After being delayed by the pandemic, Modesto is moving forward with its next phase of the Virginia Corridor Trailway, the paved path popular with walkers, joggers and bicyclists.
The city expects construction to start this summer on phase seven, which would extend the corridor roughly a half mile from where it now ends at Woodrow Avenue. The phase includes a pedestrian bridge spanning busy, four-lane Standiford Avenue and ends at West Union Avenue.
The trail now runs from Campus Way near Ninth Street to Woodward Avenue, a distance of nearly 3 miles, along the former Tidewater Southern branch of the Union Pacific Railroad. Extending the trail to West Union Avenue is estimated to cost $7.1 million, with the funding coming from a state grant and other sources that can be spent only on projects like this.
Modesto had expected phase seven to connect to its Hetch Hetchy Trail, about a quarter mile north of Union Avenue, but continues to negotiate with the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission for permission to do that.
The trail runs along the commission’s Hetch Hetchy right of way and follows the commission’s high-voltage power lines and underground water pipeline. The trail is named after the Yosemite National Park reservoir that provides power to San Francisco as well as drinking water to the city and other Bay Area communities.
Modesto broke the Virginia Corridor project into two parts because of its ongoing talks with the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission. The city had expected to start construction on phase seven in 2020 but that was delayed by the pandemic and the ongoing talks with San Francisco.
The City Council’s Safety & Communities Commission recommended Monday spending an additional $70,000 for Mark Thomas and Co. to revise the plans and other work associated with breaking phase seven into two parts. The matter will go to the full council in February for approval.
But the three council members who serve on the committee — Rosa Escutia-Braaton, Jeremiah Williams and Chris Ricci — raised objections to the pedestrian bridge’s design. The concrete-and-metal bridge evokes the railroad, just like the corridor’s other design elements, including the metal fencing along the corridor that mimics railroad ties.
The three council members want a more modern and artistic look.
This project started under a previous City Council, and the bridge’s design was selected by residents at a community meeting that drew more than 75 people. City staff said any major changes at this stage would result in significant delays and costs. Modesto had expected this part of the corridor to have been completed by 2021.
City Manager Joe Lopez told the committee that one of the top questions residents ask him is when this project will get underway.
The committee members said they don’t want to delay the project but still asked staff to report back to them regarding potential cosmetic changes to the bridge’s appearance. Any changes would require the City Council’s approval.
The city’s timeline for the project is to go out for construction bids in spring, the City Council awarding a construction contract and construction starting in summer. The city expects to hold a ribbon cutting in fall 2025 upon the project’s completion. The project includes planting trees and other landscape along the trail. The Virginia Corridor also has picnic tables, benches and lighting.
The corridor’s first phase opened in 2006 — a quarter-mile stretch from Orangeburg to Roseburg avenues. The corridor’ final phase extends the trail a half mile to Bangs Avenue and includes a bridge across Pelandale Avenue. There is no timeline yet for phase eight.
