One of the youngest residents present Tuesday evening for the grand opening of the new Acequia Trail connection on Maez Road was also its most distinguished, Six-year-old Gus Dicks, who rides his bike to Salazar Elementary School every morning from his home on Vitalia Street, was selected by the school to cut the ribbon for the new bike trail connection. Dicks' parents, Zach Dicks and Kate Martel, said they are excited about the new connection, which officially opened and connects the trail to Los Hermanos Rodriguez Park in Santa Fe's Casa Alegre neighborhood. "We've been to this park a couple of times and it's always felt silly we had to drive, because it's so close," Martel said. Despite the blustery wind, several dozen people attended the grand opening, which began with a bike ride from the Railyard water tower to Maez Road. After some brief remarks and the ribbon cutting, the group biked on the new trail to Second Street Brewery's Rufina Street taproom, where Bike Santa Fe operated a bike valet.

The trail connection was several years in the making and was a partnership between the city, affordable housing nonprofit Homewise and other partners, including the Santa Fe Conservation Trust and the Public Service Company of New Mexico. "This has been a long time coming," said Tim Rogers, trails conservation manager with the conservation trust. Rogers said the connection will serve as a "missing link" from the Railyard to Rufina Street and will give people in the neighborhood a commuting option without having to travel along Agua Fria Street or busy Cerrillos Road.

Johanna Gilligan, chief external affairs officer at Homewise, said the nonprofit initially got involved because of its commitment to building community, not just homes. "Connectivity makes cities safer, more vibrant and more sustainable," she said. Eventually the trail will be connected to the other side of Maez Road as well, where PNM owns a decommissioned substation. PNM has granted the city an easement on its lot and the trail will eventually go through there. After the agreement between PNM and the city, Gilligan said Homewise began searching for an easement on the other side of the road. The nonprofit ended up purchasing the property at 1268 Maez Road, which was formerly a triplex being used as an investment property. Homewise donated some of the land to the city and is building two homes on the lot which will be turned into affordable housing units for Homewise clients. The Santa Fe Conservation Trust then donated the back of the property as an easement to be used as a backyard for the two homes.

At the ribbon-cutting, Gilligan described getting the connection built as a labor of love. "The organization has lost money on this, but we know this is the right thing to do, and we are so excited to bring this kind of connectivity to the neighborhood," she said. The connection was lauded by members of Santa Fe’s cycling community. In an interview, Santa Fe Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee member Judith Gabriel said making the city's network of bike trails more connected is "a huge priority" for the committee. "This is another step in the progress towards connectivity, which we sorely need in the city," she said. During a recent City Council vote on increasing bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure, cyclists in Santa Fe said one of their biggest priorities was improving the connections between some of the different trails in the city to make it easier for people to travel by bike without having to ride on streets.

At Wednesday's City Council meeting, the advisory committee will present the city with the League of American Bicyclists' award.The city was first certified as bike-friendly in 2011 and was recognized again by the League earlier this year. At the ribbon-cutting, Bike Santa Fe President Jennifer Webber said the connection is "a pivotal step forward" and will make it easier and safer for families in the neighborhood to get to the park. "Everyone will reap the benefits," she said.