The City Council voted 4-2 to seek a $3 million state grant for Springway Segment 2C, a 1.6-mile Chattahoochee River trail. The pre-application is due Friday.

The Sandy Springs City Council voted 4-2 on Oct. 6 to seek a $3 million state grant for Springway Segment 2C. The planned 1.6-mile trail would follow the Chattahoochee River from Morgan Falls Overlook Park to Grogans Ferry Road.

The vote and the debate around it are recorded in the city’s summary minutes of the Oct. 6 meeting, posted ahead of their formal approval at the council’s Oct. 20 meeting.

How the council voted

The motion approved a pre-application to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources’ Georgia Outdoor Stewardship Program. It also lets the city manager sign the grant agreements if the city wins.

  • Yes: Andrew J. Chinsky, Frank Roberts, John Paulson and Melissa Mular
  • No: Melody Kelley and Mary Ford

The minutes do not record why the two council members voted no.

A packed public comment period

Twenty-two people signed up to speak during public comment. Twenty-one of them listed the trail, the grant or the health benefits of walking trails as their topic, the minutes show. Six gave their topic as a request for the council to evaluate “issues and alternatives” before voting. Ten listed addresses on Wing Mill Road, Grogans Ferry Road, Grogans Landing or Grogans Lake Point. The trail would end at Grogans Ferry Road.

The minutes list each speaker’s topic but not what they said.

What the grant would pay for

Assistant City Manager Kristin Byars Smith presented the request. She told the council:

  • the program’s largest award is $3 million
  • the city must cover at least 25% of the cost
  • the project is estimated at $13.992 million, including the $3 million grant request

The city has lined up these matching funds, the minutes said:

Source Amount
City capital project P2501 $6.995 million
PATH Foundation $1 million
Sandy Springs Conservancy $30,000

The rest would need to come from future city budgets, Byars Smith said. Our earlier story on the grant request has the full funding breakdown and what the trail would include.

What happens next

  • Friday, Oct. 16: the pre-application is due to the state.
  • Spring 2027: a selected project moves on to a second-round application.
  • Summer 2027: the state expects to announce awards.

The trail is part of the city’s 2019 Trail Master Plan, drawn up with the PATH Foundation and the Sandy Springs Conservancy. That plan includes the five-mile Loop Trail, Byars Smith said.

What it means for you

  • Nothing will be built yet. This vote only lets the city compete for state money.
  • The council meets next at 6 p.m. Tuesday in the Studio Theatre at City Hall, 1 Galambos Way. The city takes public comment online as well.
  • You can raise trails and parks at the city’s next planning workshop for its comprehensive plan and parks master plan. It runs 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 29, at the Conference Center at City Springs, the city said in its announcement.
  • Our parks and trails guide covers the paths you can use today.