If you’ve been following NeighborSpace for a while, you’ll know that the Bear Creek Heritage Trail in Dundalk has been years in the making.

Since 2012, NeighborSpace has been working with the Dundalk community to design and construct the Bear Creek Heritage Trail. This 1.25-mile trail will serve the dual goal of connecting community members with the area’s history and with the Bear Creek waterfront. With technical support from the National Park Service, NeighborSpace published a Phasing Plan in 2021 that described the six phases in which it intended to develop the trail. Construction of the first two phases of the trail was completed in the fall of 2024: community members, history buffs and hikers can now walk from the trailhead at North Point State Battlefield, through Battle Acre Park, to Wallford Drive.

Complementing the design-build efforts, a dedicated team of volunteers worked with historian Dr. Glenn Johnston for more than two years to interpret the area’s history. The team’s work shed light on the physical and societal landscape of Patapsco Neck in the early 1800s and provided novel insights that significantly changed the interpretation of the Defense of Baltimore during the War of 1812. Dr. Johnson’s final report can be found on the NeighborSpace website.

Thanks to a $105,000 Baltimore County Community Improvement Grant, NeighborSpace was able to keep the momentum going and begin to design Phase 3. It connects Phase 2 with Battle Monument School and runs along the head of Bear Creek on a trail easement that NeighborSpace holds on private property.

NeighborSpace is excited to announce that all permits have been submitted and we hope to begin construction in a few months! Construction will be funded by a $275,880 grant from the State Highway Administration through the federal Recreational Trails program. 

NeighborSpace has been working with Brenton Landscape Architecture, community members and the property owner since the summer of 2024. Together, we’ve designed a trail that connects visitors with the Bear Creek waterfront, beautifies the property, and not only minimizes impacts to the Chesapeake Bay Critical Area but enhances local environmental health.

This segment of the trail will be 650ft long and 8ft wide and constructed of asphalt to accommodate pedestrians and cyclists and be as accessible as possible. Native trees and shrubs along its length will provide habitat for wildlife and screening for residents of the Charlesmont Apartment Homes. The proposed design also includes a 1,000 square foot rain garden and replaces 2,000 square feet of asphalt with native plantings.

We are excited to see this vision come to life! If you have any questions, please contact Phyllis at phyllis@neighborspacebaltimorecounty.org.