While perhaps not as momentous as the driving of the Golden Spike in Promontory Point, Utah, in 1869 — a signal event in the history of the American West that marked the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad — the two asphalt extremes of the Pima County Loop finally met the Friday before Christmas near Fort Lowell Park.
ÃÛèÖÖ±²¥-area cyclists, walkers and runners now have a complete, 55-mile, mostly cars-free circuit that encircles much of the city. The entire Loop system features over 120 miles of paved paths that reach Oro Valley and Marana.
The final leg, which joined the loose ends east of Craycroft Road and north of Tanque Verde Road, is not completely finished but is rideable, according to County Administrator Chuck Huckelberry, who recently gave it a spin.
“It looks very good,†he said.
The county at first tried to block access while work continued, but Loop users quickly made their way around.
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“Even though it’s not officially open, our history has been, if we complete pieces of The Loop and then try to keep them barricaded, where we keep riders out, all that happens is we come in the next day and all the fences have been taken down,†Huckelberry said.
The Pima County Flood Control District’s Andy Dinauer, who is overseeing the work, said a few minor things — like installing handrails and fencing — remain. But the path itself, which Dinauer has also ridden, is ready for use. He only asked that riders, runners and walkers give the workers finishing it up plenty of room.
A formal opening is currently planned for St. Patrick’s Day, according to Dinauer.
Brett Rustand, whose family owns a compound across the Pantano Wash from the new leg, said multiple generations of his family have already been out to enjoy the now complete Loop. Prior to its completion, lengthy detours on roads, some with heavy car traffic, were necessary to get back on The Loop.
Last year, the Rustands facilitated conversations between several nearby property owners — pieces of whose land were needed for the project — and county officials about the best way to move forward with the final leg. Dinauer said his office worked closely with those property owners to minimize impacts for them.
Photos provided by Rustand show pristine blacktop with freshly painted lanes winding through mesquite trees. On a family outing Friday afternoon, he saw several dozen cyclists already out enjoying it.
“We love it,†he said.
