By JIMMY LAWTON

OGDENSBURG -- Ogdensburg City Council has committed to paying 20 percent, or $400,000 of the $2,056,000 Maple City Rail Trail project, but hopes to reduce its share with grant funding.

Despite nays from Deputy Mayor Michael Morley and Councilor Timothy Davis, Ogdensburg has committed to paying 20 percent of the cost for the project in return for accepting an 80 percent, or $1.66 million federal department of transportation grant for the project.

Morley told his fellow council members Monday that the city doesn’t have and extra $200,000 to put toward the project.

“I don’t support this project,” he said.

City Planner Andrea Smith said the city should be able to make up the difference through grants an in kind services.

Smith said the city has already acquired some additional funding for the match and that currently the gap is about 7.8 percent of the 20 percent, or about $161,000.

Smith said that with 90 percent of the funding already in place, the project will be appealing to state agencies. She said the city was successful in obtaining a state grant that would have covered the entire 20 percent, but had to return the funding because it has not yet secured the other 80 percent. Now that the federal funding has been committed, she said it is very likely the project will receive additional funds.

The project will rehabilitate an abandoned railroad bridge and convert it into a walking bridge. The city also intends to and addition of 2,400 feet of trail. The former Owasco River Railroad Bridge, known locally as the Black Bridge, crosses the Oswegatchie River. It was gifted to the City of Ogdensburg by the county for $1.

Both Davis and Morley voted against accepting the gift in February.