Bass Island River Access
Bass Island River Access
Projects at Great Parks
Bass Island River Access
Project Locations
Project Dates
START DATE: Fall 2024
END DATE: Mid 2026
Project Scope & Impact
The below locations are closed the duration of this project:
- Bass Island River Access
- Bass Island Parking Lot
- The Little Miami Scenic Trail may experience temporary closures during construction.
Tentative Project Timeline
| DATE | ACTIVITY |
|---|---|
| Fall 2021 | Community engagement |
| Fall 2024 | Construction begins |
| Mid 2026 | Construction completed |
Project Purpose
Both vehicular and pedestrian river access at Bass Island will improve with a larger parking lot, new restroom facilities, a vehicle drop loop for unloading and loading equipment and a safe and accessible path to the river. These upgrades are intended to reduce rogue trails that lead to bank erosion and damage the riverbank ecosystem.
Project Benefits
To make room for these upgrades, Great Parks will perform required tree and invasive vegetation removal. In conjunction with these access improvements, Great Parks is in the planning stages of a 13.5-acre initiative to restore forest and riparian zones upstream of the project area.
Great Parks is committed to constructing a new, safer and user-friendly river access point which is accessible to all users and will also protect the valuable ecosystem by reducing the frequency of uncontrolled entry points.
Project Resources
Community Input
In the project’s early planning stages, Great Parks sought public comment, through which 56 percent of respondents said they were dissatisfied or very dissatisfied with the current launch point, and 89 percent said improvements would make them more likely to use Bass Island.
Improvements to Bass Island were requested through the input of more than 2,800 community members in the Park and Facility Master Plan. The new access point also addresses multiple priorities established through public input into the Great Parks Comprehensive Master Plan, including access to conservation areas, establishing a defined blueway system, building ecological resiliency and sustainability and expanding access for all users.
Frequently Asked Questions
During construction, parking is available a very short distance away on the trail, at the Little Miami Scenic Corridor Golf Course & Trailhead and Avoca Trailhead. River access and parking at Bass Island are unavailable during construction.
River access is available nearby at Great Parks sites including downstream at Otto Armleder Memorial Park and upstream at Lake Isabella. ODNR also offers a comprehensive list of access points for the river.
Great Parks is constructing an improved river access point, with expanded parking and a vehicle drop loop, new restroom facilities, and an ADA-accessible route to the river, all with the goals of enhancing both recreation and conservation in the area.
Bass Island has been growing in popularity in recent years because of all it has to offer, including access to the Little Miami State and National Scenic River and the Little Miami Scenic Trail, and its proximity to other Great Parks features in the Little Miami Scenic Corridor. The previous river access point at Bass Island was contributing to riverbank erosion and other negative impacts on the landscape and wildlife. The river access was steep and slippery when wet, making for challenging and sometimes dangerous conditions. The previous layout also offered no restrooms and insufficient parking. Upgrades were requested by the public through dialogue with Great Parks.
This project will enhance both recreation and conservation, by reducing the impact from multiple uncontrolled access points to the water, expanding capacity and improving the ability for people with a broader range of capabilities to access the site.
Total cost of Bass Island improvements is estimated at $3.0 million. The project will be funded with $294,000 from the State of Ohio Capital Improvements Fund, with the remainder being made available through the Great Parks capital improvement fund from the 0.95-mill levy passed by Hamilton County voters in 2021 to support critical infrastructure needs and master plan initiatives.
A great deal of work has taken place to prepare the site for construction that is not visible from the road or trail. The site was initially closed to remove trees during a period mandated to protect endangered and threatened species in the area. Once that period passed, the site was unsafe to reopen. This project is also reliant on approval of project plans from outside regulatory agencies. Though construction may not be visible on a given day, required planning and coordination continue.
With tree removal completed, construction can begin as soon as permits are approved. Closing the site early allowed the project to advance more efficiently and avoid even longer delays to its eventual opening.
Unpredictable flooding may also affect the project timeline.
Great Parks is working closely on this project with:
- Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Scenic Rivers Program
- Hamilton County Conservation District
- Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA)
- U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
- State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO)
Permitting and approvals are required from:
- The Hamilton County Floodplain administrator (floodplain information)
- Hamilton County Conservation District (earthwork)
- Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Scenic Rivers Program and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (threatened and endangered species protection)
- Hamilton County Building Department
An ultimate goal for this project is to improve long-term ecological resilience even with a significant increase of visitors to the area. Great Parks selected the future layout for this project after careful consideration of existing parking and utilities, minimizing disturbances to the riverbank, and ultimately reducing all uncontrolled access points to the river to better protect the sensitive ecosystem here. Multiple design alternatives were developed and considered to minimize impacts on the natural environment. While the removal of a small number of trees was unavoidable as we created a new walkway to the river, Great Parks reduced the total impact on existing trees by relocating planned walkways and adding a boardwalk and retaining walls. Great Parks has over 18,000 acres, 85% of which is protected as natural spaces.
COST AND FUNDING
Special Thanks
The project is estimated at $2.4 million and will be partially funded with $294,000 from the State of Ohio Capital Improvements Fund. The remainder will be made available through the Great Parks capital improvement fund from the 0.95-mill levy passed by Hamilton County voters in 2021 to support critical infrastructure needs and master plan initiatives.