Pottawattamie County conservation officials are set to expand a county-wide trail project.

Pottawattamie County Conservation announced Wednesday the next phase of the Railroad Highway Trail. Crews with Bluffs Paving and Utility Company are expected to begin work later this month on the trail from Hanie Avenue on the edge of Council Bluffs to the trail bridge near Weston. County Conservation Executive Director Mark Shoemaker tells KMA News the roughly one-mile segment will primarily connect two pedestrian bridges along Railroad Highway and offer a continuous trail from Smith Wildlife Area to Weston.

"Anytime you leave anything undone, it kind of raises questions of 'okay, is this project going to get done,'" said Shoemaker. "So, we really felt it important that we go back to this segment and fill that in so people know that it is going to be a continuous trail going through."

The county accepted Snyder and Associates' bid on the expansion at $327,000, and the firm also assisted in completing the design for the project. Shoemaker says the trail project has been a long endeavor for the past decade and has involved funding sources from several entities, including the Iowa West Foundation, Iowa Department of Transportation recreational trail grant funds, Wellmark Foundation, Pottawattamie County Trails Association, Pottawattamie County, and Pottawattamie Conservation Foundation.But, He adds multiple sources are needed for an often hefty price tag with installing a concrete trail.