The trail to which all of the Town's major trails eventually will connect will grow by a mile in the coming months.

Town Council on Tuesday approved a $720,000 contract with Arvada-based SaBell's Enterprises for construction of Phase 4 of the East Plum Creek Trail.

The East Plum Creek Trail is considered the Town's highest priority trail, and its extension will add to the cross-Town connectivity it offers.

The new trail portion will extend south from near the Downtown parking garage on Third Street and parallel the East Plum Creek until its end near the Safeway on south Perry Street. Plans call for the trail to be extended even further south in the future.

The new 1-mile segment will link up with the new 8-foot-wide multiuse path that lines the recently opened Southeast Arterial Connection Road and the soon-to-open Southwest Arterial Connection Road. That connection is particularly important in that it will allow residents of Founders Village and Castlewood Ranch better access to the Town-wide trails system.

"Not only is this a recreational trail ... it will function as a commuter trail as well," Town Parks Planning and Construction Superintendent Jeff Smullen told Council.

The East Plum Creek Trail runs along the Town's north-south spine and is part of the Colorado Front Range Trail, which eventually will connect to all other Front Range communities.

"This is a main highway for trail users," Smullen said.

The new segment will be easily reachable from Downtown's Festival Park and also will have access points on Fair and Wilcox streets. It will provide users a close-up look at the unique creek-side habitat within Downtown Castle Rock.

Plans call for the segment to be completed by the end of the year. However, winter weather could affect the timeline. When this phase is finished, East Plum Creek Trail will span nearly 6 miles between Castle Rock Middle School and South Perry Street.

Questions? Contact Town Trails Planner Rich Havel, 720-733-4482 or rhavel@CRgov.com.