BREVARD, N.C. (828newsNOW) — Brevard officials say they now have enough funding to build the final 8 miles of the Ecusta Trail, giving the city confidence that available money will cover the project’s current estimated construction cost.
City Manager Wilson Hooper announced the funding outlook during a Sept. 30 meeting of the Ecusta Trail Advisory Board, along with representatives from the N.C. Department of Transportation and McAdams, the engineering firm designing the trail.
The Brevard portion has reached the 65% design stage, allowing the design team to use NCDOT’s cost-estimation formula to develop a more detailed construction estimate. The eight-mile section is currently expected to cost about $26.2 million.
Because the project has not yet been put out for bids, the figure remains an estimate rather than a final construction price.
Plans call for a 12-foot-wide paved trail with pavement markings, signalized road crossings and concrete-decked bridges. The project also includes drainage improvements, guardrails, retaining walls, barriers, fencing, landscaping, half-mile markers and two covered bench areas.
New restrooms and additional parking are not included in the current construction estimate because of restrictions tied to some of the grant funding.
“Now that we know where we stand financially, we may be able to start talking about a strategy to include these facilities, but if we do, that strategy should be executed after the trail project is bid,” Hooper said.
Federal grant provides major share of funding
Brevard received a $24.5 million grant in 2023 through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity, or RAISE, program.
The city also received funding through the Federal Lands Access Program in 2022 and North Carolina’s State Capital and Infrastructure Fund in 2025.
Additional financial support has come from the Transylvania County Tourism Development Authority, Friends of the Ecusta Trail, Conserving Carolina and individual donors, according to the city.
Mayor Maureen Copelof credited the project’s local, state and federal partners with helping Brevard reach this stage.
“This is one of the most important projects the City of Brevard has undertaken and when complete it will truly be transformative for our community,” Copelof said.
8 miles remain on Brevard end
The announcement comes more than a year after the first 6 miles of the Ecusta Trail opened in Henderson County in July 2025.
Brevard City Councilman Aaron Baker, co-chair of the Ecusta Trail Advisory Board, said uncertainty over whether available funding would cover construction of Brevard’s entire section had remained as design work progressed.
“On our end of the future trail, we’ve been working diligently behind the scenes and patiently waiting to learn whether our funding would cover the entire cost of construction,” Baker said. “Now, there is no doubt. The Ecusta Trail is coming to Brevard.”
The completed Ecusta Trail is expected to stretch about 19.4 miles along a former railroad corridor between Hendersonville and Brevard, passing through communities that include Laurel Park, Etowah, Horse Shoe, Penrose and Pisgah Forest.
The paved trail is intended for walking, running, bicycling and other nonmotorized uses.
The city’s announcement did not provide an updated construction start or completion date for the Brevard section.