Nights in Ankeny are a bit more colorful now that the city’s new “glow trail” is open.
Visitors can walk a 425-foot offshoot of the High Trestle Trail that has glow-in-the-dark pavement.
The glow trail is part of the first phase of the city’s High Trestle Trail Experience Park project, a segment of the bike trail being transformed into an attraction for visitors with public art installations, interactive elements and new amenities.
The park is on a section of the trail between West First Street and South Ankeny Boulevard in the Uptown area. The glow trail is located east of Walnut Street on the High Trestle Trail, south of Uptown Ankeny.
A master plan called for more art installations and amenities in the coming years as the High Trestle Trail Experience Park is built out. The $1 million first phase also included native plantings, trees and new lighting.
The cost included a $20,000 grant from Bravo Greater Des Moines.
Details about future phases of the new experience park are to be determined and announced in the years to come. City planning documents in 2024 proposed additional work in 2026 and 2028.
City spokesperson Amy Baker said a dedication for the glow trail is planned in June.
Phillip Sitter covers the suburbs for the Des Moines Register. Phillip can be reached via email at psitter@gannett.com or on X at @pslifeisabeauty. Find out more about him online through the Register’s staff directory.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Come see the night lit up at Ankeny’s new glow-in-the-dark trail
Reporting by Phillip Sitter, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
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