T-R FILE PHOTO — A view of a trestle bridge along the Iowa River between Albion and Marshalltown along the proposed Iowa River’s Edge Trail in Hardin and Marshall counties. Last week, the entities supporting a $12 million federal Active Transportation Infrastructure Investment Program (ATIIP) grant application to finance the paving of the 34-mile trail were informed that they will not be receiving the funds they requested.

A $12 million grant application to the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) to fund the construction of a fully paved 34-mile recreational trail along the Iowa River between Marshalltown and Steamboat Rock in Hardin County has been denied.

The trail would have been a hard surfaced, multi-purpose recreation trail and used by bicyclists, bird watchers, hikers, hunters and more.

Jeff Schneider of Marshalltown, president of TRAILS Inc. and an at-large city councilor, confirmed the news in an interview with the Times-Republican on Monday, and it was previously reported on KFJB Radio late last week.

“It appears that large cities — Detroit (Mich.). Nashville (Tenn.) and Philadelphia (Penn.) received a large amount of the funds earmarked for the grant — known as Active Transportation Infrastructure Investment Program (ATIIP),” he said. “We have not received a letter outlining why we were unsuccessful.”

The city of Marshalltown was the application sponsor. The grant was submitted to the USDOT last fall.

Assisting TRAILS Inc. with the application was Andrea Boulton of the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation in Des Moines. That organization has taken a strong leadership role over the years in efforts to develop recreational trails in Iowa among other endeavors.

At presstime, Boulton had not responded to a request for comment. TRAILS Inc. had worked aggressively in 2024 to raise a required $2.7 million match. Marshall County pledged $2 million, the city of Marshalltown $250,000 and the city of Liscomb $10,000, Schneider said.

Albion passed a resolution supporting the project. The Hardin County Trails Commission (HCTC) also contributed funds, but that amount could not be confirmed by press time.

In addition to Albion and Liscomb, the Iowa River’s Edge Trail (IRET) would pass through Union, Gifford and Steamboat Rock, all in Hardin County. Several miles of trails have already been paved from Steamboat Rock to Eldora.

In Marshall County, the Iowa River’s Edge Trail begins at the Ann C. Keyser Trailhead near the 200 block of West Madison Street in Marshalltown and ends at Radio Tower Road. The Keyser Charitable Trust has funded trail construction.

The trail project started in 2013 when the INHF purchased an abandoned railroad line from Marshalltown to Eldora on behalf of those two communities. Later, those communities purchased it from the INHF.

The proposed trail would have been paved with concrete and will be wide enough for users and emergency response vehicles too, Schneider said. In addition, a number of bridges in both counties — ranging from small wooden to steel trestle — will have to be reinforced or rebuilt.

Despite the unsuccessful application, Schneider reaffirmed that work on the trail will continue.

“We are planning on accepting bids for the repair or replacement of four bridges crossing the Iowa River critical to the project,” he said. “We previously received a $2 million grant for this effort.”

For more information, or to donate or make a pledge, contact or INFO@TRAILSINC.ORG., or TRAILSINC.ORG, P.O. Box 1386, Marshalltown, Iowa, 50158.