Construction is expected to begin this year on a new segment of the Museum Trail that will extend it from the Mississippi Farmers Market on High Street to Hal & Mal’s on Commerce Street.
“This will be the first segment to have an economic impact if Hal & Mal’s expands its operation,” said Dr. Clay Hays, a cardiologist at Jackson Heart who serves as vice chair of the nonprofit Jackson Heart Foundation.
“We hope other businesses will expand their operations and new businesses will develop because of the trail.”
The construction on the segment known as the Capitol Green Connector will provide an improved crossing by the Farmers Market and extend the trail up the hill to Mississippi Street to North Street in front of the Two Museums, then take it behind the Old Capitol Museum and down the railroad line to under the Pearl Street bridge and to Hal & Mal’s restaurant.
The phase will make it easy for anyone walking or biking to travel the trail to the Two Mississippi Museums, the Old Capitol Museum, the historic GM&O Depot and Hal & Mal’s.
Mary Sanders Cavicchi and Damien Cavicchi, who own Hal and Mal’s, expect the trail will benefit their business since it will be “natural stop for people walking or biking through downtown.”
The extension was announced in October with much fanfare. “The mayor (John Horhn) came out and he’s all for it,” Hays said.
Horhn called the project “a powerful example of our Jackson Rising Strategic Plan which is investing in public spaces that improve quality of life, spark economic growth, and chart a brighter future for our community.”
Planning for the upcoming extension is supported by a Federal Highway Administration Reconnec-ting Communities and Neighborhoods Planning Grant, which aims to repair historic barriers to mobility and opportunity by reconnecting people, neighborhoods, and economic centers through equitable infrastructure investments.
Fondren resident John Sewell considers a run on the trail a great escape from sidewalks and streets.
“I love that I can run from my house, get on the trail at the old LeFleur’s Bluff golf course and have a challenging run all the way down to High Street,” he said. “The extension of the trail into downtown is fantastic news. I’m grateful to everyone who is making it happen.”
Another phase of expansion will convert two of the four lanes of traffic on Court Street in downtown Jackson for use as the trail.
Longterm plans call for extending the trail through downtown Jackson to Jackson State University and on out to Clinton and Buddy Butts Park. Plans also call for connecting the trail with Ridgeland’s multi-use trails and the multi-use trails in Flowood, with the exact routes that would do that to be determined.
“This is a grand vision,” Hays said. “It’s a big vision.”
Kicked off in 2009, the trail is Jackson’s first multi-use trail system located in the heart of the city. The first phase of the trail was completed in late 2020 and it now stretches from the Farmers Market to the front of the Mississippi Children’s Museum and along the eastern border of LeFleur’s Bluff State Park.
Plans are in the works to build a pedestrian bridge over Lakeland Drive that will allow pedestrians to move from the Mississippi Agriculture Museum to LeFleur’s Bluff complex.
The trail is the focus of the Jackson Heart Foundation.
“The original focus was from the Greater Jackson Chamber Partnership,” Hays said. “They planted the seed and now we’re trying to grow it and see what it can become.”
The trail fits with the foundation’s mission to prevent heart disease by promoting healthier lifestyles and creating opportunities for physical activity. “That’s why we took it on,” Hays said.
The Jackson Heart Foundation has partnered with the state government, city government, the Great City Mississippi Foundation, the LeFleur East Foundation and the Department of Archives and History and numerous other organizations, he said. “We’re pulling these groups together with one goal of making a healthier Jackson,” he said.
Construction on the trail has had stops and starts but has been met with overall success, Hays said. “We’ve run into things we weren’t expecting,” he said.
Hays estimates construction of the trail has cost $3 million to $5 million so far.
He couldn’t answer how many people use the trail but will be able to do so in the future.
“That question has come up a lot, particularly from the Legislature,” Hays said. “People want to see a return on their investment.”
The Jackson Heart Foundation has commissioned a study by the John D. Bower School of Population Health at the University of Mississippi Medical Center on the usage of the trail and its impact.
“We met with Dr. Thomas Dobbs, dean of the Bower School of Population Health, and his team, and he has several Ph.D. students working on the study. Hopefully it will be published next year.”
Hays said trails across the country like the Museum Trail have had major impacts on cities.
“Not only do they make it easier for people to bike walk, or jog through the city, but they create opportunities for amenities like parks, public art and positive experiences for people who live here as well as guests visiting our city,” he said.
Research shows that 150 minutes of exercise per week can make a difference in someone’s health, Hays said. “It can lower the risk of heart attack or stroke,” he said.
Hays, himself a jogger who uses the trail, doesn’t believe enough people in Jackson take time to exercise.
“We want to change that,” he said. “Many people want to have a safe place to go. That’s what the Museum Trail provides. A safe and fun place.”
