On July 22, construction on the Rock Island Trail in Falcon was completed. Jason Meyer, project manager with the El Paso County Community Services Department, said the $117,000 project was funded with EPC Regional Park fees, a grant from the Colorado Department of Parks and Wildlife and a partnership with the High Prairie Library, Farmers State Bank and the Eastern Plains Chamber of Commerce.ìThe trail connection to the library is done and the bridge by the library is done,î Meyer said. ìThe whole trail is open to the public now.îAdditionally, repairs at Drake Lake are ongoing, but the lake remains open for use. ìWe are resurfacing the trails, repairing the picnic pads and resurfacing the parking lot there,î Meyer said. Intermittent closures are expected throughout the construction process but will likely take place during late fall and winter months, he said.Other repairs are still under way for areas affected by the 2015 heavy rains, and funding for those areas came through Federal Emergency Management Agency assistance, Meyer said. The funds will also repair the washed-out bridge parallel to Highway 24, near Judge Orr Road, he said.ìThat bridge is being repaired as part of the larger Bennet Channel project to remove sediment, repair the embankments and protect downstream infrastructure from flood damage,î Meyer said, adding that the county has not yet launched on the design or construction of that area.ìWe are unable to provide a detour at the Judge Orr washout, so we are asking people to use the Meridian Ranch trail system instead,î Meyer said. ìWe do not have room between the trail and the highway to provide a safe detour.îThe time frame for completion of the project is early 2017, he said.
