Construction of new trail in Citrus Heights moving ‘full steam ahead’

By Sara Beth Williams–
Despite delays during the winter months, the Arcade-Cripple Creek Trail project is “moving full steam ahead” says Wayne Edmundson, Sunrise Recreation and Park District (SRPD) interim district administrator.

Edmundson reported in an email to The Sentinel that trail construction is happening concurrently at multiple park sites, including Mitchell Village, Tempo, Northwoods and C-Bar-C parks.

Citrus Heights City Engineer Leslie Blomquist confirmed in a July 19 email that completion of the trail is contingent on bridges being installed over Arcade Creek and Cripple Creek, which will likely happen in October, followed by the trail being completed in mid-November. Blomquist cited several delays on the trail project during the 2022-23 winter season, including ‘a large amount of rain” and “corresponding wet ground conditions,” along with delays in obtaining necessary materials for the project in a timely manner.

The newly constructed trail is to measure 2.9 miles and will span from Arcade Creek Park Preserve in the west to Wachtel Way in the east, crossing over Arcade and Cripple Creeks. From Sunrise Boulevard, the Arcade-Cripple Creek Trail will travel through a portion of the new Mitchell Village Park before veering off to connect with the back of Tempo Park. The trail will run through a total of six Citrus Heights parks and a small portion will travel through two parks in Orangevale.

Locally, the trail will connect to other existing trails, including a third-of-a-mile walking and biking trail that runs through Arcade Creek Park Preserve, and a nearly completed trail that runs through Mitchell Village. When counting the existing park preserve and trail through Mitchell Village, the total trail length is over four miles long,

The trail project is part of the city’s effort to “increase walkability, safety and provide improvements for pedestrians and bicyclists throughout a system of creekside trails, passive open space, and parks.”

According to the city’s website, the City of Citrus Heights first began exploring the feasibility of a multi-use trail in 2014 and then adopted a Bikeway Master Plan in 2015 and made the Arcade-Cripple Creek trail a priority project. The trail was also identified in the Sacramento County Bikeway Master Plan. Funding was acquired in 2017 and design on the project began in 2018. Construction officially began on the trail in 2022 at Arcade Creek Park Preserve.

The Arcade-Cripple Creek trail is part of the Sacramento Area Council of Government (SACOG) Regional Trail Network and is anticipated to be a step in a regional plan to ultimately connect to the American River Parkway. The City of Citrus Heights, SRPD, Orangevale Recreation and Park District (ORPD), San Juan Unified School District (SJUSD), Sacramento County, and SMUD have all partnered together throughout the project’s development and execution.

“My hope is that it creates a unique connection between parks and natural areas and allows patrons to experience our parks in ways they never have before,” Edmundson said.

See full trail map in prior story: Construction of new trail in Citrus Heights to start this summer, after pandemic delays