Trail Construction Grant Application

Step 1.Pay Attention to the Deadlines

These deadlines must be met for consideration for the 2025 Trail Grant Program:

Current Design & Permitting Grant Awardees

Please be reminded, Projects that received Trail Grant funding for the Design & Permitting Phase must have reviews and final approvals of bid documents completed as follows, in order to be eligible for a Construction Grant:

• By 12:00 PM, March 14, 2025 (Friday) – 90-100% Documents must be delivered to Morris County Park Commission for final review and comment. (Plan Sets, Bid Specifications, All Permits (In-Hand), Construction Cost Estimate)
• By 12:00 PM, April 4, 2025 (Friday) – Complete the Technical Review Meeting with Program and Consultant.  
• By 12:00 PM, April 4, 2025 (Friday) – Submit a complete Letter-of-Intent package
• By 12:00 PM, April 25, 2025 (Friday) – Final electronic documents must be delivered to Morris County Park Commission (Plan Sets, Bid Specifications, All Permits (In-Hand), Construction Cost Estimate).
• By May 9, 2025 (Friday) – Receive Program approval to submit a Construction Application
• By 12:00 PM, June 6, 2025 (Friday) – Submit a complete Construction Application Package to:

Karl Klingener, Special Projects Manager
Morris County Park Commission
P.O. Box 1295, 300 Mendham Road
Morristown, NJ 07962-1295

Projects failing to meet the submittal deadlines will not be considered for Construction funding in the 2025 funding round.

All Prospective Applicants

• Schedule and attend Pre-Application Meeting prior to March 21, 2025.
• By 12:00 PM, April 4, 2024 (Friday) – submit 2025 Letter of Intent(PDF, 504KB) along with all supporting documentation.
• By 12:00 PM, June 6, 2024 (Friday) – submit completed application specific to type of project, by utilizing the instructions listed in step #5 below. 
  
  

Step 2.2025 Trail Grant Program Workshop Details

The Morris County Trail Construction Grant Program Will Host an Application Workshop on Wednesday, February 19, 2025 from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon, to review the overall 2025 program and application process. The Workshop will be held at the Morris County Park Commission Cultural Center at 300 Mendham Road, Morristown, NJ 07962, as well as virtually via Webex. Please register to attend by completing the Workshop Registration Form

Past Workshop videos can be found on the resource page.

Step 3.Attend a Pre-Application Meeting - REQUIRED

All applicants are required to attend Pre-Application Meetings so that staff can guide your application accordingly, and familiarize you with details of the program. Pre-Application Meetings will be scheduled from February 20, 2025 through March 27, 2025. Contact Special Project Manager Karl Klingener at 862-325-7739 or MCTrailGrantProgram@Morrisparks.net to schedule. Please be prepared to provide several dates/times for availability.  

Step 4.Fill Out and Submit Letter of Intent

Submit the Letter of Intent(PDF, 504KB)  to MCTrailGrantProgram@Morrisparks.net by 12:00 PM, Friday, April 4, 2025, 4:00pm. The Letter of Intent documents ownership of the property where proposed project will be constructed and provides an initial estimate of project costs and grant requests. Deed verification is required.

Step 5.Complete the Application that Applies to Your Project

Download the correct type of application to your computer, then fill out in Reader or Acrobat. Utilize the instructions provided to complete each section of the application. Also use the checklist provided to verify all sections of the application are complete before submission. Do not submit instructions or checklist with your application. All applications must be submitted no later than 12:00 PM, June 6, 2025

Follow these instructions for Design & Permitting Applications 

• 2025 Design & Permitting Grant Application(PDF, 315KB) (for design and permitting phase)
• 2025 Design & Permitting Grant Instructions(PDF, 385KB)
• 2025 Design & Permitting Grant Checklist(PDF, 227KB)
• 2025 Design Grant CCE Financial Workbook(XLSX, 35KB) (mandatory form for ALL design applications)
• Sample Resolution(DOCX, 14KB)
  
  

Follow these instructions for Construction Grant Applications 

• 2025 Construction Grant Application(PDF, 394KB)  (for minor or major construction projects)
• 2025 Construction Grant Instructions(PDF, 359KB)
• 2025 Construction Grant Checklist(PDF, 259KB)
• 2025 Construction Grant CCE Financial Workbook(XLSX, 39KB) (mandatory form for ALL construction applications)
• Sample Resolution(DOCX, 14KB)
  
  

Use these resources to complete your Trail Grant Application.

Step 6.Submit the Grant Application

Submit 1 electronic copy of the application by 12:00 PM, June 6, 2025 (Friday)

Contact MCTrailGrantProgram@Morrisparks.net for a Monday.com link to submit electronic applications.  

Step 7.Application Review Process

Once the application has been submitted, the following review steps will take place:

1. Staff will review the application for completeness. Don’t wait until the last minute to file as an application that remains incomplete past the deadline will be eliminated from consideration.
2. A technical review of all complete applications will be conducted by the Program Consulting Engineer.
3. Program Staff and Consulting Engineer will schedule and conduct a technical review meeting with the applicant.
4. Applicants will have approximately 1-month update their documents based on the technical review feedback.
5. Applicants will submit their updated Application, in full, no later than 12:00 PM, August 1, 2025.