Council approves bond for Opechee Loop, extending WOW Trail in Lakeport

LACONIA — City councilors approved bonding for the Opechee Loop project at their meeting on Monday night, but the process is far from complete.

“We could supply the spreadsheet that gives the estimate, but at this point, it is just an estimate,” Finance Director Glenn Smith said Monday night during the council meeting at City Hall.

Subject to council approval, city staff will put a bond out for bids, and the available arrangements will be discussed by members of the finance subcommittee. Councilors will have to approve the selected bond at a later date in order for the project to move forward. 

“Once you all get the quote and everything like that, it comes back to us to approve? To finalize the bond? So if there’s any questions at that point, we get a chance to have that discussion?” Ward 5 Councilor Steve Bogert asked.

“That’s correct,” Ward 2 Councilor Robert Soucy said. 

Smith told councilors there’s no requirement the city purchase a bond through a bond bank, and they’ll put it out for an open bid. The bond bank issues bonds in January and July.

“We have, of course, missed the deadline for the July issue,” Smith said. 

Councilors held a public hearing on authorization for the bond during the meeting. No constituents spoke for or against the project.

The Opechee Loop is a proposed extension of the existing Winnisquam Opechee Winnipesaukee, or WOW, Trail which, at present, stretches from its north terminus near the intersection of Elm Street and Union Avenue to its southern terminus in Belmont. 

Opechee Loop would ring that lake, providing a navigable pedestrian and vehicle-free pathway creating another connection between downtown and Lakeport. 

Opechee Loop Section A, the area the city is bonding for, involves the widening of a pedestrian walkway on the west side of Elm from Doris Ray Court to Franklin Street. Combined with the Lakeport Promenade project, which is privately funded, this project will extend the WOW Trail from the current northern terminus to Franklin Street, located just up the hill across the Elm Street bridge. 

The total cost for the project, including required deck repairs to the Elm Street bridge which spans the Lakeport Dam, is $935,000. The project was awarded a $225,000 grant through the Northern Borders Regional Commission and $100,000 in funding from Belknap County. The remainder — $610,000 — is to be funded through bonding, with principal and interest payments to be paid through the Lakeport Tax Increment Financing District. 

The cost of the bond will depend on the interest rate when issued. Based on current rates, it’s anticipated the cost over 15 years would be $188,000. 

Allan Beetle, president of the WOW Trail organization, told councilors in December 2024 that a large bike path connecting the existing trail at the corner of Elm and Union will one day circumnavigate Lake Opechee and surrounding neighborhoods, connecting Lakeport to the area downtown where the trail extends toward Belmont. 

The ultimate vision for the WOW Trail is to connect downtown Laconia to Meredith through Lakeport and the Weirs.