Sandy Springs will seek more than $14.2 million in a federal grant to meet a funding shortfall for the construction of a 1.8-mile section of the PATH 400 multi-use trail.
The Sandy Springs City Council approved staff’s recommendation on Feb. 20 that the city apply to the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) for the 2024 Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) Discretionary Grant Program for the project.
The project will extend the PATH 400 corridor north from the southern Sandy Springs city limits to Johnson Ferry Road.
Councilmember Andy Baumann asked what residents and council members could do to help get the grant.
Public Works Director Marty Martin said that the awareness and support of the city’s congressional delegation is important. He said the staff will be in touch with the RAISE grant program manager. He gave the city a critique of its 2023 application, which failed to get a grant award.
RAISE Transportation projects must be surface transportation infrastructure that will have a significant local or regional impact. The minimum grant amount awarded will be $5 million.
The city will need to provide a $3.7 million local match if it is awarded the $14.2 million in grant funds. That total is what is needed to complete the PATH 400 project in the city.
The total estimated construction cost is $35.1 million. The city has already received federal funding in the Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) with $2.3 million in preliminary engineering, $688,000 in right-of-way, $12,000 in utilities, and $13.9 million in construction for the project.
The project limits, as determined by the Georgia Department of Transportation, are from Loridans Drive to Johnson Ferry Road and include 1.8 miles of trail in the City of Sandy Springs and 0.5 miles of trail in the City of Atlanta.
A typical section of the multi-use trail is a 12-foot poured concrete path with a minimum of 2-foot…
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