Walkway Over the Hudson State Historic Park Connecting Poughkeepsie with Town of Lloyd Opens 3pm Sat. Oct. 3

Designated Parking and Shuttle Information Available Online

POUGHKEEPSIE, NY (09/25/2009)(readMedia)-- Anyone planning to attend the Grand Opening Celebration of the Walkway Over the Hudson Historic State Park should note that the Walkway will open to the general public at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 3. Until then, the public is encouraged to attend any of the numerous free events scheduled to take place in the host communities—the City of Poughkeepsie and the Town of Lloyd—on Friday, Oct. 2, Saturday, Oct. 3 and Sunday, Oct. 4 Visitors should go to Walkway Over the Hudson's website at www.walkway.org for full details on designated parking areas and scheduled shuttle bus service over the Oct. 2-4 weekend.

In the City of Poughkeepsie, Parker Avenue, site of the Walkway's eastern entrance, will be closed to vehicular traffic on Friday evening and all day Saturday. It will re-open on Sunday, Oct. 4. In the Town of Lloyd, Haviland Road, site of the Walkway's western entrance, will be closed to vehicular traffic on Friday until 10 p.m.; all day on Saturday and on Sunday until 5 p.m. Designated parking areas have been established in both communities with shuttle buses available to bring visitors to and from activity sites. .

On Friday, Oct. 2, shuttle bus service will be provided in the City of Poughkeepsie from parking lots located along the westbound arterial (Route 44/55 West) and along Cannon Street. The busses, which will run from 7-10 p.m., will bring visitors to Waryas Park for viewing of the Grand Illumination of the Walkway Over the Hudson, featuring a lantern release, Big Band Sound jazz band, and fireworks.

In the Town of Lloyd, those wishing to view the Grand Illumination will need to drive, walk or cycle to the town's waterfront, where they can see the activities from Oakes Road or Bob Shepard Park Highland Landing Park. Please note: no shuttle service will be provided in Lloyd on Friday and vehicles will be turned away from accessing the town waterfront after all available parking has been utilized.

On Saturday, Oct. 3, shuttle bus service will be provided in the City of Poughkeepsie from the same lots mentioned previously (Route 44/55 and Cannon Street) from 9 a.m. until 9 p.m. Busses will bring visitors to Waryas Park for a closed circuit broadcast of the ceremonies and activities occurring on the bridge and numerous festivities planned there throughout the day, including One River, Many Streams Folk Festival, presented by the Dutchess County Arts Council, Clearwater River Cruises, Clearwater & Hudson Valley Bluegrass Association Music Festival, and a theater performance of "Mutual Strangers" by Arm of the Sea Theatre group at 6 p.m. From 3 p.m. until 9 p.m. shuttle busses will transport visitors to and from the Parker Avenue entrance of the Walkway.

On Saturday, Oct. 3, shuttle bus service in the Town of Lloyd will be offered from free designated parking lots located at the intersection of Route 299 and 9W, and the Ford/Chevy dealership along 9W. From 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. the busses will bring visitors to the top of Milton Ave for Highland HudsonFest in the Hamlet of Highland, Vineyard Ave. and Main St. in the Hamlet will be closed to vehicular traffic, for Highland HudsonFest; a street fair celebration from noon to 5 p.m. and Block Party from 6–10 p.m. featuring numerous family-friendly activities and a closed circuit broadcast on a jumbotron television of the ceremonies and activities occurring on the bridge. A separate waterfront shuttle will operate from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. taking visitors from the top of Mile Hill Road (accessible via the 9W shuttle) to Oakes Road and Bob Shepard Highland Landing Park along the western waterfront. From 3 p.m. until 9 p.m. the shuttle will take visitors to the Walkway's western entrance along Haviland Road.

On Sunday, Oct. 4 the Walkway will be open to the public from 8 a.m. until 7 p.m. A "Rooftops to Treetops" 5K run hosted by the Mid-Hudson Runners will begin at 8 a.m. In the City of Poughkeepsie, Parker Avenue will be open to vehicular traffic and permitted handicapped parking only will be available at the Walkway's eastern entrance parking lot. Shuttle busses will be operating from designated parking located at Lot D at Dutchess Community College off Pendell Road in the Town of Poughkeepsie. Shuttles will run from 11 a.m. until 6 p.m.

In the Town of Lloyd, shuttle busses will operate along the 9W loop bringing visitors to and from the Walkway's western entrance on Haviland Road from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. Haviland Road will remain closed to vehicular traffic until 5 p.m. on Sunday, at which time limited parking will be available at the Walkway's western entrance parking lot. From Noon until 6 p.m. the Hudson Valley Bluegrass Association and Clearwater are sponsoring a festival at Bob Shepard Highland Landing Park that will feature several area bluegrass bands—including Blue Plate Special, Rich Hines & The Hillbilly Drifters, Mama Tried, Red Dirt Road, No Brakes—and performances by Arm of the Sea Theatre and the Hudson River Sloop Singers.

For a complete list of activities, maps, and schedules please visit the Walkway Over the Hudson's website at www.walkway.org

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