A federally-funded, off-road pedestrian path planned in Cornelia has been delayed indefinitely following recent budget cuts at the national level.
As planned, following the old Tallulah Falls rail line, the Rails to Trails project would’ve spanned 50-plus miles from Cornelia to Franklin, North Carolina.
In the city, the trail would have run from the Cornelia Depot and spanned about two miles from Grant Place to the GA 365 bridge past Walmart.
The city of Cornelia had planned to use around $4.6 million in funds for the project, financed through the $550 billion Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed by Congress in 2021. But that money has for now been gutted as the federal government continues to slash funds across the board.
“With all the cuts that have been made, it got cut out,” Cornelia City Manager Dee Anderson said. “All we’ve been told is we need to reapply.”
The DOGE, or Department of Government Efficiency, website states that an estimated $140 billion in federal cuts have been made since the department began reviewing spending in January.
While Anderson said the stripped funding is a possible result of the department’s cost-cutting measures, City Attorney Steve Campbell said the source of the cut is not entirely known.
“I wouldn’t speculate,” Campbell said.
