For Gary Mayor Eddie Melton, an effort to revitalize abandoned elevated rail tracks is another example of how the city is growing and changing.
“We can’t do it all alone,” Melton said Thursday night. “Tonight is a historic moment when you all came together and talked about what we can do collectively as a community.”
A former elevated train bridge crosses Massachusetts Street near East 11th Avenue in Gary, Indiana on Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (Andy Lavalley/for the Post-Tribune)
Melton joined about 30 Northwest Indiana community members for the Gary ELevated Coalition’s kickoff meeting at the city’s YWCA. The coalition will work to help convert the city’s elevated railroad in Midtown into a multi-use trail that will be part of the Marquette Greenway, which runs from Chicago to New Buffalo, Michigan.
The revitalization is a partnership between the city of Gary and the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission. The coalition is made up of community stakeholders that will meet quarterly, and they will help learn about the process, message information to constituents, provide ideas and set up meeting spaces.
“I think it’s a testament to the work that we’re doing in Gary,” Melton said about the coalition. “Having your voice … in this project is extremely important.”
Mitch Barloga, active transportation manager for NIRPC, said Thursday’s kickoff meeting was the “start of a long journey.” He hopes that revitalization work will start this year, and that part of the trail will open for residents to see the process.
Mayor Eddie Melton speaks during the informational and kickoff meeting for the Gary Elevated Coalition in Gary, Indiana on Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (Andy Lavalley/for the Post-Tribune)
Christopher Harris, Gary’s executive director of redevelopment, said the city plans to host a trail day on April 25, where residents can see progress, including the clearing of brush and shrubs as well as other work to make the trail safe.
“We think it’s going to be really important for all of you stakeholders to see what could happen,” Harris said. “We’re very happy to be able to help execute this vision … because what’s happening is going to make our city an attractive place to live.”
The city of Gary already owns various parcels of what will be the elevated trail, Harris said, which will make the revitalization process easier. The city is working to acquire the other parcels as well, Harris said.
Gary already has bridges throughout Midtown, Barloga said, which will make the process easier and won’t take much to revitalize.
Active transportation manager for the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission Mitch Barloga gestures at the end of the informational and kickoff meeting for the Gary Elevated Coalition in Gary, Indiana on Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. (Andy Lavalley/for the Post-Tribune)
Barloga expects the revitalization will be complete in 2034. The project is inspired by similar elevated trails in other cities, including Chicago, Milwaukee and New York City.
“The advantages are obvious, with it being an elevated trail,” Barloga said. “People just dig that, being up high and being over the community. It’s very popular … and it’s going to go right through the heart of the Gary community.”
In addition to NIRPC — which will help plan the trail — the city will receive help from various partners, including consulting from the SmithGroup, a Chicago-based architecture firm. Purdue University landscape architecture students will also help design the trail, Barloga said, and he anticipates that the Rails to Trails Conservancy will provide grant funding.
Barloga anticipates the project will cost between $50-60 million, and each bridge will cost about $2 million to rehabilitate. He said it’s possible that the project could be cheaper.
Penelope Love looks on as attendees introduce themselves during the informational and kickoff meeting for the Gary Elevated Coalition in Gary, Indiana on Thursday, Jan. 15, 2026. Love represented the Aetna Manor Revitalization Program. (Andy Lavalley/for the Post-Tribune)
Barloga is excited for the elevated trail project, and he thinks the coalition meeting was a good sign for its future.
“We have our passion, but if no one joins you in the passion, it’s a lonely party,” Barloga said. “This is a big deal, and the city is doing amazing work cleaning up, getting new jobs, getting new opportunities and seeing great growth.”
