Columbia plans new trail connecting downtown to Canal and Riverfront Park
A new greenway trail in downtown Columbia could connect a busy entertainment district to one of the city’s top parks.
The city of Columbia is looking for designers to help extend the Vista Greenway to the Columbia Canal and Riverfront Park, creating a new pathway for riverfront access and furthering a goal of residents and local leaders to see the Midlands’ various riverfront trails eventually connected.
Columbia’s Vista Greenway currently runs from the Lincoln Street tunnel at Lady Street, to Elmwood Avenue, with a leg running alongside the newly renovated Finlay Park.
The new trail to the riverfront would begin parallel to Elmwood Avenue, running alongside the Elmwood and Historic Randolph cemeteries. Plans laid out to designers also envision an elevated railroad crossing over two sets of tracks for the Norfolk Southern and CSX railroads.
The trail is expected to wind through the Lower Paupers Cemetery to the canal, requiring a bridge over the canal, connecting to the existing trail there. The request suggests there could be a boardwalk through the lower cemetery.
“By creating a seamless link to the river corridor, the City aims to enhance access to existing recreational amenities, promote active transportation, and reinforce the role of the Greenway as part of a broader, citywide trail network,” a request for qualified designers, posted April 10, reads.
Another new bridge is already in progress that will connect the canal park to the Saluda river walk and Boyd Island that sits across the Broad River from the canal. That project, dubbed the Broad River Pedestrian Bridge, is being paid for by the Darnall W. and Susan F. Boyd Foundation and Richland County.
The trail to the canal park would also be in addition to existing plans to see the Vista Greenway extended from where it currently ends at Elmwood Avenue, all the way to the BullStreet District.
Early last year, city leaders heard a proposal to extend the greenway north to Earlewood Park and east to Page Ellington Park in the BullStreet District. That project could cost the city around $7 million, according to estimates shared early last year.
The trail to the riverfront would also connect to the Vista Greenway. It’s not immediately clear what the costs could be for the leg that will connect to the canal. The State has contacted the city for more information, including a possible construction timeline.
The project is being considered at the same time the city is looking for developers to turn a largely vacant 19-acre stretch along River Drive into apartments, shops, green space or a variety of other priorities laid out in a call to firms last month.
The future Vista Greenway extension is expected to run through or alongside that project.
Also in progress is a massive riverfront development along the Congaree River, largely between the Blossom and Gervais street bridges, where the city is planning to develop a “world-class” waterfront park and more, including building out even more trail connections.
