ESCONDIDO (KGTV) — The Escondido Creek Trail is open to the public after 18 months of construction and renovation, with all 6 miles of the trail now accessible.
The redesigned trail features improved signage, lighting, paving, and landscaping, along with fitness stations, seating and gathering spaces, and children's play areas. New decomposed granite trails separate wheeled users from pedestrians, and upgraded lighting extends the trail's use as a transportation corridor throughout the year.
Maribel Valle, who has lived in Escondido for more than 30 years, said the trail's former reputation kept many people away.
"I would hear about it being scary, being a little dangerous, so I think that this is a great opportunity to bring in the community, to bring in more people," Valle said.
Valle said she hopes residents will take ownership of the space going forward.
"I really call to our people to take care of it, to adopt the creek, and, just, you know, just keep beautifying it and take advantage of it," Valle said.
Deputy City Manager Joanna Axelrod said the vision for the trail dates back to a community group formed in 2010.
"We have expanded trail access. We have ADA improvements. We have tried very hard to create new decomposed granite trails so that we can separate wheeled users from pedestrians for safety....Lighting which makes it so much safer and allows this to be a transportation corridor that people can use all throughout the season," Axelrod said.
Grants from the California Department of Parks and Recreation and Caltrans funded the renovations. The city said construction totaled $12 million.
Axelrod said the trail is part of a broader effort to revitalize the city.
"The Creek trail project is just one of many things that the city is doing with partnership from the community and neighborhood groups to bring vitality and energy back to the city," Axelrod said.
For Valle, the best part of the newly renovated trail is seeing her neighbors enjoy it.
"Everybody's so friendly, everybody's just happy to be walking or riding their bikes or, you know, walking their dogs, so everybody's friendly around here. So I think that anybody that experiences this, uh, creek is going to be living happy," Valle said.
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