Funds will be used to help finish the half-completed trail connecting Lake Placid, Tupper Lake
By James M. Odato and Chloe Bennett
Voters two Novembers ago ended up lending a hand to the completion of the Adirondack Rail Trail between Lake Placid and Tupper Lake.
Gov. Kathy Hochul on Tuesday said $13.1 million from the 2022 Clean Water, Clean Air and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act will be used to help finish the half-completed trail.
She announced the funding at Mount Van Hoevenberg, on the edge of Lake Placid, one of the facilities operated by the Olympic Regional Development Authority. Hochul has budgeted $82 million in capital in her latest spending plan for the public authority following more than $600 million in investments in recent years.
“We’re going to keep making those investments to make sure that people know that the North Country is the most desirable winter sports destination in the entire world,” she said. “So I’m excited to write the next chapter for Lake Placid in American sports, right here.” She said she envisions a return of the Winter Olympics to Lake Placid but did not provide an update on the state’s bid to host 2026 sliding sports at Mount Van Hoevenberg.
The Nordic center sits a few miles from the southeastern trailhead of the 34-mile, multi-use recreational corridor that will take trekkers past historic railroad depots in Lake and Lake Placid, Saranac Lake and Tupper Lake. Besides the trail money, Hochul revealed that Lowville in the western Adirondacks was selected to receive $10 million through the Downtown Revitalization Initiative program.
The rail trail, in development and construction for several years, will be a regional education, interpretation, and economic asset, the governor said. When complete, the trail will offer recreation for hikers, bikers, cross-country skiers and snowmobilers. The path between Lake Placid and Saranac Lake was opened late last year.
“The Adirondack Rail Trail is bolstering tourism and connecting New Yorkers to the outdoors to enjoy the unparalleled beauty of the Adirondack Park,” Hochul said in a press release. “As construction continues, this new $13.1 million investment is instrumental in fulfilling the Environmental Bond Act’s commitment to improving recreation opportunities for residents and visitors alike.”
The rail trail will offer interpretive signs on the history of the railway, cultures of adjacent communities and surrounding lands and waters, the governor said. The trail is now open for snowmobiling, cross-country skiing, fat-tire biking and other recreation.
The trail is designed to be accessible by people of all abilities where practicable, state officials said. Its surface will consist of compacted crushed stone except for about three miles paved through the village of Saranac Lake and over bridges.
As part of the project, the Department of Environmental Conservation is preserving the historic Saranac Lake Depot and the associated Freight Building, contributing features of the New York Central Railroad, Adirondack Division Historic District and listed in the State and National Registers of Historic Places. It is an integral part of the Remsen-Lake Placid Travel Corridor and an integral part of the village of Saranac Lake that will serve as the key interface between the State-owned Rail Trail and the village.
In October, DEC solicited ideas and plans for the depot’s use and public access through structure improvements, opportunities for historic interpretation, facilitation of a welcoming outdoor experience for the public, and activities or operations that complement the Adirondack Rail Trail. DEC is reviewing submissions before issuing a formal request for proposals.
Work to transform the trail started in October 2020 when the state Department of Transportation removed rail from the Tupper Lake to Lake Placid segment of the corridor. In March 2022, the state announced the transfer of jurisdiction to DEC, marking the formal completion of the rail removal phase and the start of the formal trail design and construction phase. The state set up a map and more information at DEC’s Remsen-Lake Placid Travel Corridor webpage.
The bulk of the newly announced $13.1 million will pay for construction of the final leg of the trail. About $3 million will help support the Saranac Depot project and $4 million in improvements to the sections already opened. The whole trail is expected to cost $38 million.
Voters approved borrowing in November 2022 for various projects when they passed the $4.2-billion Clean Water, Clean Air and Green Jobs Environmental Bond Act. The act passed with about 60% of the vote, although Adirondack counties were split.
The majority of voters in Hamilton, Lewis, Herkimer and Fulton counties voted against the bond act, whereas voters in Essex, Franklin, Clinton, Warren, Washington and Saratoga counties predominantly supported it.
A key purpose of the bond act is to pay for fixing and updating water infrastructure and protect water quality, strengthen communities’ ability to withstand severe storms and flooding, reduce air pollution and lower climate-altering emissions, restore habitat and preserve outdoor spaces and local farms.
Hochul committed $1.8 million to support 27 not-for-profit organizations involved with stewardship of state parks, trails, historic sites and other public lands, including $75,400 for the Adirondack Rail Trail Association, a group that has promoted creation of the rail trail and now aims to support its improvement. ARTA’s grant is expected to pay for a multi-year strategic plan, fundraising activities, a volunteer program and marketing.
The governor has also committed $300,000 for Lake Placid to help pay for rail trailhead parking, restrooms and a bike maintenance station.
The trail should be accomplished in 2025 with the Saranac Lake-to-Lake Clear section set to be completed this year followed by the link to Tupper Lake.
Editor’s note: This article was updated to clarify the location of the Lake Placid trailhead.
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“The trail is now open for snowmobiling, cross-country skiing, fat-tire biking ”
This is a ridiculous statement. Snowmobiles and XC skiing simply do not mix. Unfortunately the Adirondacks lack an expansive XC skiing network; it is piecemeal and not maintained to standards common in Europe. BREIA is the best in NYS.
Skiers in the Park have been using snowmobile trails as long as there have been snowmobiles in the Park. It isn’t ideal, but this is simply not Europe – or any other place for that matter. Unique sets of land management rules exist in the Forest Preserve. We don’t all like the mix of winter transportation types in the backcountry, but by necessity we have learned to share the resources available.
Certainly safer than riding a bicycle on a highway!
The Adirondacks could be a destination for XC skiing if there was a maintained network of groomed trails. The state has emphasized development for motorized winter recreation of machines that can go 100 mph out of the store, it never will be hospitable for non-motorized sports like XC. It is like who wants to paddle on the Fulton chain lakes dodging jet skis and cigar boats. Not me.
upstater,
It is certainly true that in the past, NYS has listened closely to the snowmobile lobby – even to the exclusion of the ATV lobby. The X-C ski network lobby (if there is one) is likely not as well funded. In Albany, it is all about the $$. But as I mentioned before, the US ski culture is different than in Europe. It has a relatively short history here, so the tradition is not as ingrained.
But there are plenty of backcountry X-C opportunities where snowmobiles are technically banned – both on State and private land. There are NYS funded Nordic and skating trails scattered around the state, but true – no big groomed networks. But I wonder TODAY if X-C skiing is the hot sport it was 30-50 years ago. Both motorized and ski activities depend on snow, which seems to be becoming more unreliable over time. But a louder voice in Albany always gets their attention – regardless of how much sense it makes.
It works in other trails in NYS and across other snowbelt states and provinces. Why not in the Adirondacks? A great example is the NYS Canal trail that is being used by many user groups, including cross country skiers, snowmobilers, biking, runners and walkers. The skiers prefer the groomed trails that the snowmobile clubs provide.
How about putting some friggin cell towers in the Adirondacks? Disguise them as trees but FFS, it’s 2024 and no data signal or even cell signal in many areas! But let’s spend millions on trails instead of real improvements. Pathetic!
I go to the dack’s to enjoy what only they have to offer. I can live just fine without having a cell phone in my hand 24/7 ! The rail trail will be one of the best things that has been done in the Adirondacks in a long time, offering year around usage.
How much will additional cell towers contribute to tourism and local economies? Public safety and convenience are both intangibles in Albany. Where is the money best spent? What will result in more votes? Always a tug of war.
Hi, I would like to know if Open Space Institute had had a hand in acquiring this property?
Does anyone remember when the trail advocates assured us that the trail would cost the taxpayers absolutely nothing? The $39,000,000 spent on this trail proves that they were lying to the public. Let’s see how close they were to the economic impact figures. Wanna make another multimillion dollar bet?
No – I don’t recall that. I don’t deny it, but it seems illogical – both on RAIL upgrades in the S and TRAIL conversion to the N. Can you provide a link? I don’t believe NYS ever supported this position. If improvements were to be done to the corridor, it would need to be done their way and on the taxpayer dime.
I don’t remember either.
we have skied snowmobile trails for years. We try to go during the week instead of weekends. Either way we stop and listen before going around a sharp turn or approaching the crest of a hill. Snowmobilers have been almost all courteous. Plus we know without them the 1, 2, or 3 skiers we may see all day are not enough to justify their own trail system expense. We have also worked on trails during the fall with the local snowmobile club. We all use the trail. We have stopped and helped sledders pull a stuck sled out of deep snow. We all like the wood’s trails. As for more cell towers: part of the reason we moved to the North Country 15 years ago was to move out of the land of cell phone zombies who walk around with their hand extended following their cell phone. Look around and see nature’s beauty instead looking at the phone. I am also a First Responder and know about dead zones. We still get the job done and find people.