Originally published at https://www.escondido.org on February 3, 2021.
Escondido Creek Trail Improvements Have Been Granted!
More and more, cities are pursuing improved access to urban trails and pathways as part of their planning and development strategies. These trails are seen as critical contributors to local quality of life as well as economic development.
One such urban trail in the City of Escondido is the Escondido Creek Trail (ECT), an approximately six-mile urban trail that runs east to west from the Escondido Humane Society to Harmony Grove and throughout the downtown area. It is open to pedestrians and cyclists and is accessible at street crossings and access points. The ECT has primarily been a transportation outlet for bicyclists and walking commuters.
Rendering of the Escondido Creek Trail signage.
Thanks to a state grant, the vision to turn the ECT into a linear park began over a decade ago and is now nearing its reality.
In 2020, the City was awarded $8.5 million to make improvements for the ECT from the California Department of Parks & Recreation through the Prop 68 Parks & Water Bond Act of 2018, which aims to create new parks and recreation opportunities in underserved communities across California.
Out of 478 applications, statewide, 62 projects were awarded, and the ECT was one of only nine projects funded at the maximum $8.5 million and one of three projects funded in San Diego County.
Map of the Escondido Creek Trail.
The goal is to transform the trail into both a transportation outlet and a recreational park. The project will include improvements on 4.5 miles of the trail (between Harmony Grove Road and Midway Drive) and add nearly 0.4 miles of a new bicycle path (between Harmony Grove Road and Midway Drive). It will also create a double-sided trail on nearly 1.7 miles, one for bikers and one for walkers.
Since the award was granted, City outreach through stakeholder meetings, surveys, and social media has been underway to incorporate community ideas and feedback regarding the improvements. Additionally, an informative web page is available to answer questions and provide feedback.
“The improvements to the trail are going to be transformative and give our citizens a boost in quality of life as more and more people flock outdoors,” said Danielle Lopez, Assistant Director of Community Services.
Lopez added even though the pandemic has made meetings more difficult to schedule, they have had community input on the project. Community feedback and comments include the desire to make the trail safer. One way to do that is to replace the fencing.
“It’s counterintuitive, but the fencing makes people feel like they are enclosed on the trail,” said Lopez. “We will be replacing it with cable link fencing or split rail.” Lighting, new landscaping, water bottle filler stations, recreation amenities, pocket parks for children, butterfly gardens, a bike ramp, and skate features, as well as murals and public art, will be added along the trail.
One of the goals is to make the ECT family-friendly.
“We want to allow for parents and kids who live on the other side of town to get to Washington Park or walk down to Grape Day Park and play on the new play structure or come visit the History Center or the San Diego Children’s Discovery Museum,” said Lopez.
Anna Villalobos, Customer Service Representative for Escondido’s Economic Development added, “It’s nice to be able to have access without being on the street.” She said she often rides bikes on the path with her family and feels it is safer than using street access to get places. She also hopes getting the word out about the trail’s usefulness and upgrades will be beneficial to the City.
The City is currently working with design consultant RRM Design Group to design the new look of the trail. There will be another community workshop scheduled in March before the construction planning phase starts and will continue through the end of the year. Construction will begin in January 2022 and has a two-year timeframe to completion.
The City is encouraging businesses along the ECT to orient their stores toward the trail to help boost sales from increased customer traffic along the trail. Shifting business entrances toward the trail will allow trail users to more easily be able to stop in for a snack or coffee.
“The Escondido Creek Trail is an outlet for neighborhoods to connect with our local business community,” said Amber Tarrac, Escondido’s Deputy Director of Economic Development. “Our goal is to work with businesses along the trail to face customer entrances toward the trail. This will make it even easier to entice new and existing customers to access their stores and businesses while using these wonderful new trail amenities.”
Rendering of the ECT along business areas with murals painted along the route.
Ideas such as expanding outdoor dining to face the trail or creating murals on their walls that overlook the trail have been discussed.“We want our business community to feel connected to the trail and use it to increase foot traffic in the area,” Tarrac added.
Businesses along the trail are encouraged to reach out to the Economic Development Division with questions regarding what they can do to help highlight the trail and its access to their businesses. Tarrac also hopes many will continue to participate in the surveys, and attend the final workshop meetings to discuss the designs and plans for the trail.
“Community and business engagement are essential to the success of the Escondido Creek Trail,” she said. “We hope everyone will consider taking part in the discussions to ensure that we reimagine a trail that will continue to improve and enhance our great city.”
The community and businesses are invited to find out more information or to view past workshops in English and Spanish on the Escondido Creek Trail website.
The next community meeting will be posted on the website once it is scheduled. If you have questions or feedback about the trail or wish to get involved, you are invited to submit your feedback here.
Your participation is valued and appreciated.