Mount Airy’s second greenway could be completed in November — several months ahead of schedule — according to discussion at a Wednesday meeting of the Mount Airy Parks and Recreation Commission.

However, Jeff Boyles, Mount Airy’s public services director, added that “things have to go very well” to allow the November timetable to be achieved for the city’s latest major recreational facility. The greenway and other features are being constructed along the Ararat River in conjunction with a $4 million streambank-restoration project.

Boyles, who monitors the progress of the job through his public works role with the city, said that North State Environmental, the contractor for the project, has managed to stay ahead of schedule despite a rainy spring and summer. The Winston-Salem firm has been quite productive when the weather allows, he said.

“I think the fact that during the days they could work, they’ve put several crews on the job and really worked hard on it,” Boyles said in explaining the company’s progress.

The Ararat River restoration project stretches from the northern side of Riverside Park to U.S. 52, covering some 16,928 feet. The project was a response to riverbank erosion which has been occurring at a rate of 15 feet per year.

North State Environmental began work on March 30 and officially has until next March to complete the project, under the timetable set forth in the construction contract. The company is hoping to be finished by the end of November, Boyles told Parks and Recreation Commission members, “but I’m not sure that’s going to be done.”

The public services director said he didn’t want to make any firm promises because of the weather and other variables that could delay work.

In August, officials had said that the new greenway wouldn’t be completed and open to the public until early next year. The Ararat River greenway will be about two and a half miles long, roughly the same size as Mount Airy’s first greenway along Lovills Creek on the opposite end of town. The new greenway will offer a more secluded, natural environment for walkers, runners and cyclists than the first.

The centerpiece of the greenway will be the H.B. Rowe Environmental Park, a facility near Mount Airy Middle School including nature trails and habitats to aid science studies. From Riverside Park, the trail’s route bisects Hamburg Street and continues through Bannertown to B.H. Tharrington Primary School.

Boyles said Wednesday that recent progress has included underpass work to allow the trail to cut through Hamburg Street, the installation of a foot bridge in the area and grading for a soccer field behind the Tharrington campus.

Four covered picnic shelters also have been built along the greenway route. Additionally, the project is opening up the Ararat River to kayaking and canoeing through access points on the river, and improvements have been made at Riverside Park.

Contact Tom Joyce at tjoyce@mtairynews.com or at 719-1924.