VILLAGE OF BARNEVELD RECEIVES TAP GRANT

Last year the Village of Barneveld completed a Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan (“Corp Plan”) for improvements of the parks in the Village of Barneveld.  A survey was sent out and residents responded to the improvements that they wanted to see at the parks throughout the Village.  Those responses were put into the “Corp Plan” and set the direction on the improvements that the Village is working on and what the priorities are.  One of those items at the top of the list was a safety concern in getting walkers and bikers to Birch Lake Park safely.  Residents wanted to see a walk/bike path from the Village to Birch Lake Park.

Last year Iowa County completed the engineering to reconstruct Hwy T from Barneveld to Hyde.  The Village of Barneveld worked with Iowa County in designing a walk/bike path from the Village to Birch Lake Park.   With that design completed and the “Corp Plan” completed the Village worked with Iowa County and applied for a “TAP Grant” (Transportation Alternatives Program).   This grant was an 80/20 grant, meaning if the Village and County received the grant 80% of the cost of the project would be paid for by the grant.

On July 21, 2022, the Village of Barneveld and Iowa County received notice that the grant has been approved.  The total estimated cost of the project is $1,014,360.00 and the amount of the grant is $811,488.00.  The Village will need to fund the other $202,872.00.  The Village also applied for a Stewardship Grant that could cover some or all of the $202,872.00.  The Village should know the status of that grant by the end of October.

The Village and County will be working on finalizing the design and setting the timeline for construction this fall.   The Village of Barneveld would like to thank Iowa County for their partnership and the residents that took the time to complete the survey for the “Corp Plan”.  This grant and project is a direct result of completing the “Corp Plan”.