The new year will bring some upgrades to the trails at Royal Lake Park.
With a two-year-long design and permitting process nearing completion, the Fairfax County Park Authority is accepting public comments through Jan. 27 on an environmental review of the planned trail-network improvements at the park in Kings Park West.
According to the park authority, the planned improvements include:
- Replacement of the pedestrian bridge over Rabbit Branch on the north side of Royal Lake
- Construction of a new stream valley trail connecting an existing asphalt trail north of Lakeside Park to Commonwealth Blvd
- Repaving the park entrance trail from Richardson Drive to the soccer and baseball fields at Lakeside Park
- Paving of the natural-surface trail linking the asphalt trail on top of the dam to the Royal Lake Loop Trail
- Installation of a fabric shade structure and updated picnic equipment near the playground. Work has started on this segment of the project, which is being funded locally rather than through federal funds.
Construction on the $1.3 million project is expected to start in early 2025 and conclude before the end of 2026, depending on weather conditions.
In order to start construction, the park authority is seeking a categorical exclusion from the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the law that typically requires projects receiving federal funding to get an environmental assessment or impact statement approved. The categorical exclusion allows that requirement to be waived for projects found to not have a “significant effect on the human environment.”
The proposed trail improvements at Royal Lake, which are being supported in part by Covid recovery funds from the American Rescue Plan Act, aren’t expected to affect wetlands or waters, a consultant hired by the park authority said in a Dec. 13 letter to the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation.
Residents of surrounding communities have been engaged in the project, county officials say.
A 46-acre park that centers around a 38-acre lake, Royal Lake Park has two main entrances at 5344 Gainsborough Drive and 5216 Pommeroy Drive. In addition to trails, amenities include a playground, basketball and tennis courts, a multi-purpose athletic field and picnic areas.
