From Maine to Bridesburg to Florida

By Daniel Paschall, East Coast Greenway Alliance Mid-Atlantic Manager

It is not everyday that a new park opens up for the public to use in Philadelphia. It is even more rare for that new park to be so rooted in community stewardship and simultaneously a critical piece of an integrated local, regional and national trail system. Riverfront North Partnership has done just that in bringing Robert A. Borski, Jr. Park to life this summer.

Borski Park is the last of eight parks that are being tied together along an 11-mile greenway in development along Riverfront North’s portion of the Delaware River Trail in Northeast Philadelphia for people of all ages and abilities to walk, bike and roll. This trail is also part of a growing network of more than 850 miles of trails across greater Philadelphia in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, called the Circuit Trails.

The park and trail also are a critical part of the 3,000-mile-long East Coast Greenway, which is being built by linking local trails just like this together from Calais, Maine, to Key West, Florida. On the Greenway route, Borski Park sits 915 miles from Calais, Maine, and 1,939 miles from Key West, Florida.

Although many people might not take on the challenge of traveling the entire East Coast Greenway, there are many who will want to walk or bike to the next neighborhood over from where they live. Perhaps some will even venture on to the next town, city or state on a longer excursion. By working towards the vision of a continuous trail that connects into the heart of where people live, work and play, the Greenway aims to support safe, active transportation and access along its entire corridor to get people where they need to go.

In Bridesburg, Borski Park exemplifies this access with 10 acres of new green space where communities can come together for improved physical, mental and social health. From yoga to dancing to fishing to volleyball and more, Riverfront North Partnership offers an incredible array of programs and events in all of the parks and trails along the Greenway in Northeast Philadelphia.

Since Congressman Bob Borski came up with the idea for Northeast Philadelphia’s riverfront Greenway in 1995, there have been other riverfront trails along the East Coast Greenway that have grown in their own right, including the Hudson River Greenway in New York City, the Anacostia River Trail in DC and the Riverwalk along the Christina River in Wilmington, Delaware. But only Borski Park and the larger Riverfront North Delaware River Trail can speak to the identity and history of Bridesburg and Northeast Philadelphia.

With each new segment of off-road trail filling in its gaps in the coming years, the East Coast Greenway route will keep shifting to follow the paths of the Delaware River Trail, and travelers can more comfortably and safely explore the connected histories that tie Philly to all of its neighbors, north and south.

For anyone looking to travel parts of the East Coast Greenway, be sure to review the Greenway Guidance and cautionary notes on the route map.