On April 8th 2022, Lansdowne Borough Council and Mayor Magda Byrne celebrated the opening of the Gateway Slope walkway with a dedication ceremony to Norman "Marty" Council. Several elected officials spoke about the collective vision from the federal, state, county, and local levels to create accessible trails, parks, and pathways for all residents to share. United States Representative Mary Gay Scanlon shared the vision of investment in infrastructure created by the American Rescue Plan funds. State Senators Anthony Hardy Williams and Tim Kearney discussed the investments on the state level to local municipalities. County Council Vice Chair Elaine Schaefer discussed the fruition of the vision to connect the Darby Creek Trail to the neighborhoods in Lansdowne and Hoffman Park.
Lansdowne Borough is thankful for the advocacy and partnership with US Representative Mary Gay Scanlon, State Senator Anthony Hardy Williams, State Senator Tim Kearney, State Representative Gina Hackett Curry, and Delaware County Council.
Borough Council President Benjamin Hover presented Katie Dunnington and the family of Marty Council a copy of the dedication plaque at the ceremony as well. As a member of Council and as Council President, Marty Council was a fierce advocate for smart growth and was instrumental in the land purchase to fulfill the vision of Gateway Slope as an entry park into Lansdowne. As Henri Matisse said, "There are always flowers for those who want to see them." And Marty Council had the vision to see the flowers.
With the completion of the trail, Lansdowne Borough continues to grow the green spaces for our whole community to enjoy.
Borough Council would like to thank Bonnie's Wondergardens, DJ Joe Foley, and Franklin Fountain for helping to make the ceremony a success.
About the Gateway Slope Project
Lansdowne Borough was awarded two grants to support the development of a pedestrian trail as an extension of the Hoffman Park trail. The new trail extension known as Gateway Slope connects to the existing trail at the South East corner of Scottdale and Baltimore Avenue with Eldon Road at Baltimore Avenue. The project allowed for disbandment of the existing sidewalk that was inadequate and dangerously close to Baltimore Avenue traffic. The two awards total $600,000 one from the PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources Community Conservation Partnership Program C2P2 in the amount of $300,000 and another from the Commonwealth Financing Authority Multimodal Transportation Fund in the amount of $300,000 awarded.