ROXBURY, NJ - If approved by county officials, a proposed trail, partially along the shoreline of Lake Musconetcong, will connect Roxbury to the NJ Transit train station in Netcong.
The proposed “Netcong Greenway Trail” is one of six municipal trails the Morris County Board of County Commissioners is being requested to fund with grants. The recommendations, from the county Trail Construction Grant Advisory Committee, were presented to the commissioners on Wednesday.
The advisory panel suggested the commissioners should award a $109,320 grant for the design of the Netcong Greenway Trail project. The trail would run from “the Mount Olive side of Netcong to the Roxbury border, including 0.87-miles of sidewalk wayfinding, a stone dust wooded trail and boardwalk along Lake Musconetcong,” said the county.
Documents show the proposed new trail connecting the train station to other parks in Netcong “and other destinations in walking and biking distance” and terminating at Arbolino Park on the Netcong/Roxbury border. They show a proposed 1,400-foot-long boardwalk along the lakefront adjacent to Koclas Drive.
The total cost of the trail design was estimated to be $136,650.
Although the proposed trail would abut Port Morris, there are no existing trails nearby in Roxbury that it could connect with, said Roxbury Recreation Director Brett Douglas.
The advisory panel recommended the commissioner award more than $1.2 million in grants for the design of six municipal trails “and the completion of two trail construction projects as part of the county’s ten-year-old Trail Construction Grant Program,” said the county.
It said Betty Cass-Schmidt, chair of the Trail Construction Grant Advisory Committee, presented the 2025 recommendations, which include other projects in Jefferson, Long Hill, Dover, Florham Park, Hanover, Madison and Rockaway Township.
“Tonight’s presentation provides an opportunity for questions and discussion," said Deputy Director Stephen Shaw, who serves as the liaison to the county Office of Planning and Preservation. “The board will not be taking any formal action until our next meeting, when we’ll consider the committee’s recommendations and vote accordingly … The work done by this committee, along with our dedicated volunteers and staff, is truly outstanding. Morris County residents can be confident that their Preservation Trust Fund tax dollars are being invested wisely.”
The commissioners plan to vote on the matter at their Nov. 5 meeting.
“If the recommended projects are approved by the commissioners next month, Morris County will have dedicated nearly $7.8 million towards establishing more than 35 miles of trails in just ten years since the inception of the Trail Construction Grant program in 2016,” the county said.
Funding for the projects comes from the county Open Space & Farmland Preservation Trust Fund.
“A referendum for the program was passed in 2014 by a 3-to-1 margin," said Cass-Schmidt, according to the county. “The first time the trail committee provided funding recommendations was in 2016. To date, 36 of 39 municipalities have received grants.”
The county said that, in 2021, a Design & Permitting Category was included with the trail grant program “to allow municipalities to adequately assess the needs of a proposed trail project and get a realistic understanding of construction costs.”