A WALK IN THE WOODS. The City of Eau Claire will build three stretches of boardwalk, like this one, along the western shore of Half Moon Lake this year. (Submitted image)

A boardwalk trail providing scenic wetland views will be built alongside Half Moon Lake in Eau Claire, connecting a trail behind the YMCA’s Menard Tennis Center to Rod and Gun Park. The Eau Claire City Council voted unanimously Tuesday, March 14, to approve a $1.2 million for the project.

In addition to three 8-foot-wide boardwalk segments, the new trail will include a separate concrete portion, according to a city proposal. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has already approved the boardwalk, which will be accessible to walkers, people in wheelchairs, or families pushing strollers.

“That’s one of the beauties of this project: It’s designed to make a wonderful area in the City of Eau Claire available to everybody,” Lane Berg, the city’s community services director, told the City Council. Building a trail in the area, across Half Moon Lake from Carson Park, has been part of the city’s Comprehensive Plan for 25 years, added David Solberg, the city’s engineering director.

The project’s cost will be covered by the city’s trail budget.

CLICK FOR A BIGGIE. The three boardwalk segments are colored yellow, teal, and red in this map. They will connect to a new concrete path, in white, along the western shore of Half Moon Lake. The entire trail will connect the YMCA's Menard Tennis Center, at the bottom of the map, to Rod and Gun Park. Carson Park is the wooded peninsula at right. (Submitted map)

The boardwalk had been proposed last year, but the original plan was modified somewhat in response to feedback from neighbors. Instead of being a boardwalk alone, the trail will consist of a concrete path with three separate boardwalk spurs that reach along the western shore of the lake.

“This projects opens up a lot of possibilities in terms of people being able to access this area,” while also keeping them on the trail and out of the wetland, said City Councilmember Jeremy Gragert.

After a brief discussion, the City Council unanimously approved contracts with the project’s two winning bidders, including a $1.06 million contract with MN Boardwalks of Glencoe, Minnesota, to build the boardwalk, and a $132,000 contract with The Skid Steer Guy of Mondovi for the concrete portion of the trail.

According to the city, some trees and brush have already been cleared for the project. Construction on the concrete portion of the trail is expected to begin when the weather warms this spring, while the adjacent boardwalk will be completed in early to mid-fall.