Departments » Public Works

Highland Park River Greenway

Font Size: + -
Share & Bookmark, Press Enter to show all options, press Tab go to next option
Print
Highland Park River Greenway

It has always been our desire to connect two major Middlesex County parks along the Raritan River – Donaldson and Johnson Parks. Both parks are heavily used by Highland Park residents who are currently unable to travel safely between them without traversing busy streets and intersections, including State Route 27.

The “Highland Park River Greenway” would create a one-mile-long, safe, enjoyable, and ADA-accessible trail along the Raritan River, which would connect the two parks while also connecting residents and visitors with the river. The trail would be both pedestrian and cyclist-friendly. Completion of this project would also constitute an important segment of the East Coast Greenway.

Feasibility Study

The Borough contracted with local landscape architecture firm ETM Associates to produce a feasibility study that will serve as the basis for future funding requests to support design engineering and implementation. The study was funded by a generous $250,000 grant from the NJ Department of Community Affairs (NJDCA).

The feasibility study, available below, includes:

  • Wetland Delineation
  • Site Survey
  • Site Engineering Analysis
  • Geotechnical and Permitting Needs Analysis
  • Conceptual Design Development

Click HERE to read the Feasibility Study. 

Community Meeting

More than 60 residents and property owners joined the Borough on Wednesday, December 13th at the Community Center for a community meeting about the Highland Park River Greenway. Representatives from ETM Associates summarized their findings from the feasibility study as well as shared some of the next steps to make this project a reality. The presentation slides and presentation recording are available below.

HP Greenway Photo 2

View the presentation slides HERE. 

View the presentation on YouTube HERE. 

Next Steps

The feedback and discussion during the community meeting was robust. Safety, accessibility, shared roads between cyclists and pedestrians, funding, and maintenance were included in the range of topics that were discussed.

The Borough intends to use the remainder of the NJDCA grant to start the preliminary engineering phase to get some designs on paper that can be used to kick start discussions with coordinating agencies including:   

  • NJ Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP)
  • NJ Department of Transportation (NJDOT)
  • Middlesex County
  • Freehold Soil Conservation District
  • Middlesex County Utility Authority