Thousands of dollars in damage from Helene means a months-long setback for the Ecusta Trail.

The first section of the 19-mile-long greenway was supposed to open at the end of 2024.

Some people are still enjoying some parts of the trail.

Ecusta is still an active construction site.

“You can’t go very far without seeing the impacts of Helene,” Henderson County Engineer Marcus Jones said. “Even today, it’s been three months. We’re having to rebuild shoulders and pavement sections. There was probably about fifty trees [fallen] across the trail.”

That totals about $406,000 in damages.

“The project is funded with federal grants,” Jones said. “It’ll impact federal tax dollars. Currently, there are no local property tax dollars in this project.”

Things could’ve been worse. The trail’s new drainage system was ready before the historic flood.

“We have purposefully redesigned and upgraded the drainage system for the trail,” Jones said. “The drainage system did well in a storm event that was multiple times more than what it was designed for. There are six bridges on this trail section and none of them were affected by Helene. We’re fortunate. That’s a really good way to look at it.”

Still, the storm potentially set the project back by six months.

“June of this year,” Jones revealed. “However, that’s a conservative estimate. I think we should be able to beat that. People, not only friends of the Ecusta, but everybody I talk to is very understanding of the situation.”

While the county doesn't have the resources to enforce it, Jones is asking the public to stay off the trail to speed that timeline up.

“We just want to make sure folks stay away from construction equipment and the damaged sections. Really, it’s a better idea to just stay away from the trail," Jones said.

STORY COURTESY OF WLOS CHANNEL 13 ASHEVILLE