Following months of discussion, deliberation and communication with county and state officials, Pennsburg representatives recently received its desired outcome on a plan to replace a bridge on Main Street.

            Last week, an administrator from the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation informed municipal officials that the Montgomery County Planning Commission has removed a proposal to construct a passageway under the bridge to accommodate the potential expansion of the Perkiomen Trail through the borough.
            "The county is comfortable with the removal of the planned passageway in the current plans," wrote Nathan Parrish, a project manager with PennDOT, in a Feb. 11 letter, printed on letterhead from the Montgomery County Board of Commissioners.
            Since a Dec. 8 meeting between municipal officials and commissioners Vice Chair Ken Lawrence, the county officials reassessed the viability of a potential conversion of the former Reading Railroad line into a shared use trail as part of the county's Rails to Trail program, according to the letter. It states that they determined the development of a future shared use path within the Macoby Creek between 11th Street and Route 663 as a viable alternative.

            Municipal officials are extremely happy with the decision, according to Pennsburg council President Diane Stevens. She described the meeting with Lawrence, an avid trail user, as the key to the turn around. The commissioner understood the borough's logic, according to Stevens

            On Dec. 8, Lawrence toured the bridge – located on Route 29 near the intersection with 11th Street – and the proposed path through Pennsburg, with Lee Soltysiak, the county's chief operating officer, and multiple stakeholders. Five days later, the commissioner said the proposal doesn't make sense. He also announced that he has directed the planning commission to take another look at the proposal.

            According to Stevens, replacement of the bridge – previously scheduled for this year – has been rescheduled for 2023. She said Tuesday that PennDOT is planning to alter the design of the structure.
            County officials have since assessed the viability of utilizing the Macoby Creek corridor between 11th Street and Route 663 as a means of accommodating a future extension of the trail, according to the letter from Parrish. It states that they have preliminarily determined that utilizing that path would require additional and extensive engineering studies, including, but not limited to, soil analysis, cultural and environmental studies, preliminary floodplain analysis, and community support research.

            It will also involve broad-scale feasibility analysis to explore all options for carrying the Perkiomen Trail to and through Marlborough and Upper Hanover Townships and Red Hill, Pennsburg and East Greenville boroughs.

            Two months ago, Lawrence – who described himself as an avid user of the county's trails – described the potential development along the creek as a possible fix.

            Since July, Pennsburg officials have advocated rerouting the connection from 11th Street in Red Hill, along the creek to the Pennsburg Nature Preserve, located off East 5th Street.
            Approximately 1,700 feet of paved multi-use trails, utilizing the abandoned Perkiomen Railroad right-of-way, have already been constructed in Red Hill Borough. The segment extends from East 8th Street to the Red Hill/Pennsburg boundary and is approximately 650 feet from where the continued trail – intended to accommodate pedestrian and bike access – would cross below the newly constructed bridge, according to an Aug. 27 letter from Bill Hartman, an open space section chief with the county planning commission, to Pennsburg officials.