Holcomb marks 100th mile of Indiana trails program in Merrillville

Gov. Eric Holcomb and Lake County officials marked the 100th mile of trail built through the state’s Next Level Trails program during a ribbon cutting Tuesday that opened a nearly 3-mile segment of the C&O Trail in Merrillville.

Town officials and Lake County Parks worked together to fund the 2.82 miles of trail, according to a state news release. Through a $804,106 grant, the Lake County Parks built 1.47 miles of the trail, and Merrillville officials received an approximately $1.4 million grant to complete 1.35 miles of the trail.

Holcomb said he was pleased to commemorate the 100-mile progress of the state’s Next Level Trails program, which awarded $180 million toward 89 projects across the state to foster the development of regional and local trails.

Of the 89 projects, 34 have been completed and contributed to 100 miles of trails since the program’s inception in 2018, according to the release. In December, Holcomb announced that 1