St. Charles County residents invited to open house to discuss extension of Centennial Greenway in St. Charles & St. Peters

Proposed extension to connect Centennial Greenway from Katy Trail to Laurel Park, Wapelhorst and Spencer Creek

By: Danni Eickenhorst, Communications Manager

On Thursday May 2, Great Rivers Greenway, will host an open house at the Heritage Museum from 4 to 7 pm to discuss Phase II of the Centennial Greenway, which would extend through areas of the cities of St. Charles, St. Peters and St. Charles County. The event will be held in partnership with the Francis Howell School District, Missouri Department of Transportation, St. Charles City, St. Charles County and the City of St. Peters.

The district, which serves St. Louis City, St. Louis County and St. Charles County, is working to improve the quality of life for the entire region by connecting communities with greenway trails and on-street bicycle routes. To date, the district has developed more than 114 miles of greenway trails in its overall 600-mile region River Ring plan.

The first segment of the Centennial Greenway was constructed from the Katy Trail to Heritage Museum Park in St. Charles County in 2010. The proposed extension would allow individuals living and working in the St. Charles County area to safely connect on bike or foot from downtown St. Charles to St. Peters, from the Katy Trail to Laurel Park and to Wapelhorst Park and the Spencer Creek in future phases.

Since construction of the first phase of the Centennial Greenway in 2010, the popular trail has realized heavy use, with more than 214,000 trail users utilizing the Centennial Greenway to connect to the Katy Trail each year. With increased use, the need for a safe off-street connection over Highways 364 and 94 has become apparent. The proposed extension of the Centennial Greenway would provide trail users the opportunity to cross the busy thoroughfare without risking their safety and that of their family in the process.

The project proposes connections that would affect many in the region. More than 2,300 K-12 students living near the project zone would be provided with safer access to schools, parks and area activities. More than 10,000 people living within 1 mile of the Heritage Museum would have the opportunity to walk or ride to get where they need to go safely. With the Centennial Greenway’s proposed expansion, local residents and trail users would enjoy new connections to St. Peters, and in time, to the Upper Mississippi River.

Can't attend? Please take a few moments to fill out an online survey at www.CentennialGreenway.org to weigh in on the proposed extension.