A $2 million state grant for the engineering and construction of a Middletown connection to the Air Line State Park Trail in Portland has the potential to unlock another $8 million in federal dollars for the overall project. The Air Line, a former railway that takes its name from the imaginary line drawn from New York to Boston, according to the state Department of Energy & Environmental Protection, is a stone dust trail used by walkers and cyclists. Plans are for it to eventually connect the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail with Middletown at the center, according to a news release from state Sen. Matt Lesser. Once finished, the 23-mile ALT-FCT Connector would complete the 111-mile Central Connecticut Loop Trail. “This construction money makes this project so much more feasible and have much better legs than it did before,” the executive director added. “This is a great position to be in.”
https://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/article/air-line-trail-grant-middletown-portland-18414919.php