Brea officials plan to improve and expand the trail on the historic railroad tracks westward, ultimately connecting it to other cities in North Orange County.
The expansion comes as part of a plan to revamp the tracks, a former train railway turned nature park, with new amenities like picnic areas, pathway lighting, and kinetic sculptures in the historic park.
Council members did not respond to requests for comment.
It comes after Fullerton officials moved forward with a plan to use nearly $2 million in grant funding to build a trail in the southside of town – where parks are scarce – after advocacy by residents.
[Read: Fullerton’s Nature Trail Moves Forward After Resident Advocacy]
The continued development of the tracks in Brea was one of the top priorities officials listed in the 2023-2025 adopted budget.
As of June 2023, the city has received more than $17 million in grants to help fund the long project.
The expansion would extend from the Brea Canyon Flood Control Channel to North Berry Street.
This project has been in the works since 2021 when the council approved a $225,000 grant from the San Gabriel Valley and Lower Los Angeles Rivers and Mountains Conservancy (RMC) to go towards the plans.
RMC is one of 10 conservancies created in California to preserve open spaces for the creation of recreational spaces.
Sean Matlock, Brea’s deputy director of Community Services, said the first six segments opened over a span of 12 years and were paid through with grants.
“We have one real small segment between Brea Boulevard and Berry Street that has not been built – part of it has been – but then it just kind of ends with a roundabout,” he said in an interview.
According to Matlock, there are plans to continue west from Berry Street to Palm Street and into other cities within Orange County.
“There is still an active train in that area. So that piece will be a little trickier,” he said.
He also added that the project is part of a collaboration to create one big trail, the OC loop, which is a 66-mile trail that goes through cities bordering Los Angeles county, along the coast to Huntington Beach, east through Anaheim and North through Yorba Linda and Brea.
Much of the trail is along Coyote Creek that borders Los Angeles County and along the Santa Ana River, which stretches through Anaheim, Santa Ana, Fountain Valley and Huntington Beach.
According to the Orange County Transportation Authority, the loop is 88% complete and is used by thousands of people to walk and bike.
In a public data survey conducted by the city, residents said they want the improvements to include commissioned artwork, picnic areas, and paths linking businesses and employment.
Residents also said they want the city to address visibility concerns and safety concerns by adding streetlamps and pathway lighting to extend park hours into the night. Due to runoff from the hills, residents also wanted to add slope interfaces to help capture the runoff.
Ian Wang, a resident of Brea, was surprised to hear about the expansion and was interested in learning more about it.
“I’ve never used the trail before,” he said. “But by adding picnic areas and more public spaces, I definitely would hang out with my friends there.”
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