Phase 6 – Under Construction

The Cross Trail is growing! Phase 6 of the Cross Trail, currently under construction, will extend the trail from Harbor Mountain Road to the Old Sitka boat launch, the Old Sitka cruise ship dock, and the facilities and trails at Starrigavan Recreation Area. When Phase 6 is complete, multiuse, separated bike and walking paths will run along the entire length of the Sitka road system. The trail is designed to have negligible maintenance needs and withstand high water flows. Construction of the last 2.6 miles will take two years to complete. 

The vision for the complete Cross Trail was developed in the landmark 2003 Sitka Trail Plan. Over the years, Sitka Trail Works led the development the trail from Indian River to Kramer Avenue, and worked in partnership with the City of Sitka to support the separated bike path from Indian River to Silver Bay  

In 2015, Sitka Trail Works began the design, planning, and permitting after winning a $250,000 Federal Lands Access Program (FLAP) grant from the US Department of Transportation. PEAK Engineering designed the Phase 6 project in the spring of 2016. After the alignment was established, all permitting was completed by the end of 2018. 

In late 2016, Sitka Trail Works secured an additional $1.9 million in Federal Lands Access Program (FLAP) funding to construct the Phase 6 Cross Trail, but the grant required a 9{abf465c19454c250f574557adc626a2e06d1cd01c0781f16298455748ce24614} match, meaning that we had to fundraise another $192,000.  

The City and Borough of Sitka authorized the use of $50,000 in Commercial Passenger Excise Tax funds for the connector trail to the cruise ship dock. Then the Rasmuson Foundation generously donated $117,000 in private funding. Seeing the need, everyday Sitkans, longtime supporters of Trail Works and new enthusiasts alike, stepped up and pooled over $25,000 to close the gap in funding. Even with significant outside funding, a project of this size never could have succeeded without the tremendous support of the community, our members, the Rasmuson Foundation, and the City.  

As the administrator of the FLAP funds, the City of Sitka is a close partner in all stages of the trail development. In the fall of 2019, Trail Works and the City developed a contract to outline the partnership over the 2-year construction period. Contract documents were signed the first week in December and construction began that week.  

As of March 2021, 1.8 of the total 2.6 miles have been constructed and the new parking lot on HPR has been filled in. The next steps will involve constructing a bridge over Watlachéix‘k’i Héen (No Name Creek) and developing the connector trail to the cruise ship dock.