A proposed $145,500 grant application for a Mead Avenue bikeway and walkway project was rejected at a special Corry City Council meeting Wednesday evening after the motion failed to receive a second. The city’s required match for the grant would have been $43,500.
The meeting took place just days after the city was sued by Impact Corry over the closure of a separate walking trail between Route 6 and Elk Street — a point that was raised during public comment.
Mayor Michael Baker, who introduced the resolution, said the previous $40,000 grant request for engineering on the same project “didn’t make the cut.” Council President Buzz Hammond made the motion to proceed, but no other member offered support, effectively ending the proposal on the spot.
Numerous residents objected to what they called a lack of transparency, short notice for the meeting, and lack of communication with homeowners along Mead Avenue. Several questioned whether the project was appropriate given its estimated $2 million construction cost and the ongoing lawsuit over the trail closure.
One resident asked Baker directly why the city was pursuing a grant for a new walkway while being sued over closing a nearby trail. Baker replied that the city had not yet been formally served with the lawsuit.
Mayor Baker confirmed during the meeting that the proposed engineering study would cover a walkway and bikeway from Route 6 to Washington Street along Mead Avenue, not the controversial closed trail. When pressed by Councilman Jeff Fike and others, Baker acknowledged the grant application had only been drafted two weeks earlier, despite earlier comments suggesting longer planning.
Councilmember Kristen Lindstrom questioned the process and said she could not support the project without public input or adequate planning, warning that future councils could easily cancel such efforts and waste taxpayer money.
Public commenters also expressed concern about how little information was available, including basic project descriptions, maps, and traffic or safety studies. Others raised questions about the trail’s impact on sidewalks, driveways, and property lines.
Critics referenced the city’s own 2020 Active Transportation Plan, which prioritized off-road trails and did not recommend Mead Avenue as a bikeway location.
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