Possibility of trail concerns some residents

Possibility of trail concerns some residents

Churchville Mayor Nancy Steedman has addressed recent concerns over the possibility of constructing a pedestrian bridge over Black Creek as part of a walking trail that would connect downtown to the east side of the creek near Baker Street.

"It is not a high priority item at this time," Steedman said.

Members of the Fargnoli family who reside at 29 Baker Street have said they are upset because the possible future walking trail would cut directly through their five-acre property. The bridge and walking trail are part of the Village's Charrette which acts as a vision plan for future development. "The only status of this 'bridge' project is that it is on the drawings from the Charrette," Steedman said. "The village has not moved forward on this particular item, the village does not consider it a 'project' at this time … we are moving forward on different aspects of the Charrette such as the Gateways and the boardwalk from the dam on Black Creek and the walkway to the park along the western bank of the creek. We are changing our zoning to reflect the vision of the Charrette for the business district. These are the immediate projects that we are working on."

The possible pedestrian bridge and walking trail are not part of the proposed Westshore Trail and Steedman said the development of the Westshore Trail will not have an impact on the village pursuing a pedestrian bridge over Black Creek at this time. "I think more important is the issue of becoming the 'trailhead' for the Westshore Trail," she said. The Westshore Trail would begin at Main Street (Route 36) in Churchville, on the west side of Black Creek and head west, in the opposite direction of Baker Street, to Elba in Genesee County. "It (the possible pedestrian bridge and walking trail) is not in the Joint Comprehensive Plan (Riga/Churchville) except by inclusion of the Charrette outcomes," Mayor Steedman said.

Steedman said she telephoned the property owner of 29 Baker Street, Dominic G. Fargnoli, to set his mind at ease, "… and explained to him that we are not going to do a bridge over Black Creek in the near future and that I was concerned that he was upset. I asked him to stop down and talk to me about it when he was available. He said that he would do that soon. He also said thank you for my call."

But even the potential of a bridge and trail sometime in the future has Dominic G. Fargnoli's son, Dominic V. Fargnoli, who also resides at 29 Baker Street, worried. He said his family has long-range plans for the land, "The trail would go down the middle of the land my family owns and we are pretty content with not letting that happen … my family members in the future could build a house there. We will fight Churchville every step of the way, my parents are dead set against this." Fargnoli also expressed other concerns if the trail ever became a reality. "It would be a bridge to nowhere," Dominic V. Fargnoli said, "Why go right down the middle of our land? Who will pick up garbage and trash? What about people cutting through and starting fires? It's a safe haven for animals that come to drink at the creek every day."