BELLE — City officials last Thursday met with Missouri State Parks officials and Meramec Regional Planning Commission’s Kelly Sink on April 17 to discuss permission to begin building 1.1 miles of the Rock Island Trail through the heart of Belle.

Charro Reasor, treasurer for the city of Belle, said everyone who needed to be in on the conversation was present. Sink is acting as the city’s grant administrator. The city’s chosen engineer for the project, Jeff Meadows with Archer-Elgin, was also present.

“The Park guys gave direction, information and other stuff we would need,” Reasor said. “Our completion date is Oct. 31, 2025. We go to bid around the first of May. It has to be advertised for three weeks, and then they’ll make the selection in June.”

Mayor James (Pudd) Mitchell said after the entities reviewed the plans, State Parks said they were ready for the city to advertise.

“We were just waiting on the notice to proceed,” he said.

The city was awarded a $174,000 Federal Highway Administration (FHA) grant, which is part of the Missouri State Parks Recreational Trails Program (RTP) grant administered by the Missouri Department of Natural Resources (DNR) Division, around 2020. They are required to have a 20 percent match, including in-kind work. The 20 percent match is $43,798.51 of which the city may contribute up to a $22,492.55 in-kind and $21,305.96 in cash.

The in-kind match may include installing bollards, signage, culverts, crosswalk striping, setting up the trailhead kiosk and installing water and sewer pipes for restrooms and water fountains.

The cash amount is about $1,300 more than what the city was expected to contribute under the previous RTP grant that was pulled back by State Parks officials before development could take place.