Public can weigh in on Girdwood plan to restore Beaver Pond Trail

Girdwood residents have until Oct. 30 to weigh in on a plan to restore the Beaver Pond Trail using state-administered trail grant money, the same day applications to the state are due.

The Girdwood Trails Committee is applying for Recreational Trails Program funds, federal trail grants awarded by the state transportation department, according to a public notice dated Sept. 21. The program reimburses up to 90% of eligible costs and caps awards at $100,000. The work would include brushing, or clearing vegetation, new culverts and gravel, and restored water crossings. The goal is to bring the trail to Class 3 Hiking parameters, the middle of the committee's five-level scale, where Class 1 is least developed.

The project would run from June 2027 to June 2029. No grant has been awarded. No construction has been approved.

The committee will take comments in person at its meeting Tuesday, Oct. 6, at 7 p.m. in the Girdwood Community Room. Comments or opposition also can be submitted by phone at 907-343-8373 or 907-343-8374, by email to [email protected] or [email protected], or by mail to Girdwood Trails Committee, PO Box 390, Girdwood, AK 99587.

A 2017 Anchorage Community Challenge Grant put $8,250 toward the trail. The committee did not apply to the program in 2025. Its 2024 award, about $180,000 in federal funds, went to the Middle Iditarod National Historic Trail under an earlier $200,000 cap.