GOOD HOPE — The city of Good Hope has received a $5,125 grant from the Alabama Mountains, Rivers & Valleys Resource Conservation & Development Council as part of its planned park expansion and trail construction project.

AMRV Chair Mike Roden presented the check to the city Friday morning near the site of the planned trail system.

Good Hope purchased a 33-acre plot of land adjoining Municipal Park in June, with the purpose of providing additional trail space for city residents and a possible venue for high school cross country events.

Good Hope Mayor Jerry Bartlett said the grant received Friday will go toward’s the city’s current plans for a 3.2-mile long trail loop for cross country events along with a .69-mile short trail loop that would also be open for the public.

To go along with the trails are plans for a splash pad, pavilions, a playground, a facility for local scouts and a bathroom within the new park area, he said.

Bartlett said the first phase of the project will be the trail system, with the additional facilities coming later, and the city is currently working to secure grant funding that would pay for the clearing of trees, land prep and the construction of the trails.

Good Hope isn’t able to pay out of pocket for the trails or facilities, so the city is currently pursuing a grant from the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs to pay for the first phase, Bartlett said.

He said if all goes as planned, the state will release the grant money later this year for municipalities to apply for it, and if Good Hope is able to get the funding, the city can hopefully get started on the first phase of the project in the spring.

Anything that comes after the trails, such as the splash pad or pavilions, will be included in later phases of the project and will require their own sources of funding, which means it will be a long time before the project is completed, Bartlett said.

“It’s going to be a work in progress for years.”

He said he and the members of the Good Hope City Council have heard from residents about how excited they are for the trails, and he urged them to stay patient as the city raises the money and works to see the project to completion.

“We want it just as much as they do, but it’s just a process,” he said.