Two projects expected to enhance recreation opportunities along the Barren River near downtown Bowling Green got boosts Thursday.

Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear made a quick stop at the Warren County Courthouse to announce funding for the city of Bowling Green’s project to rehabilitate the College Street pedestrian bridge and a Warren County Parks and Recreation plan to build a dual slalom mountain bicycle racing course at Weldon Peete Park.

Beshear presented a ceremonial check for $1.6 million to the city, with the money coming from the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet’s federally funded Transportation Alternatives Program. The city will ante up another $400,000, money needed to complete the $2 million rehab of a bridge that dates to 1915.

The governor also brought a check for $25,000 from the Department for Local Government’s Recreational Trails Program that will go toward constructing a bicycle slalom course that has been planned since 2015.

“These projects will give Warren County families more ways to spend time together, get outside and get exercise and enjoy the natural beauty of this community,” Beshear said. “Investing in our infrastructure, from our local playgrounds to our busiest highways, is a huge part of how we build a better Kentucky.”

City of Bowling Green Public Works Director Greg Meredith said the TAP funding will allow the city to move forward on a much-needed project to shore up the only connection for bikers and pedestrians over the Barren River between downtown and the riverfront.

“What this is going to do is secure that historic structure for generations to come,” Meredith said.

The rehab will ensure the structural integrity of a bridge that was once used for vehicular traffic but has been strictly a pedestrian walkway since the early 1990s. The project will involve removing the old lead paint on the bridge, upgrading the aging supports, installing new lighting and making needed repairs to the stone pier near the bridge.

City officials say rehabbing the bridge is a key part of a plan to develop riverfront recreation opportunities.

“We’re committed to riverfront development,” City Commissioner Sue Parrigin said. “The pedestrian bridge is extremely important for downtown redevelopment.”

The other funding announced by Beshear will jump-start a project that has for years been on the wish list for the Bowling Green-based Southwest Kentucky Mountain Bike Association.

Chip Winger, chairman of that association, said last year that plans for the course call for two winding 1,000-foot tracks that run parallel and allow for two bicyclists to race.

The slalom track will also include a “skills course,” a return path that riders can take back up to the starting point while maneuvering through wooden ramps and other obstacles that help riders improve their skills.

The dual slalom course will complement the existing 2.6-mile Low Hollow Mountain Bike Trail that opened in 2012 in a portion of Weldon Peete Park that is maintained by the city of Bowling Green.

The dual slalom course is planned for the county-maintained portion of the park.

Warren Fiscal Court, as its mandated match for the $25,000 grant, has already approved spending $6,200 for the dirt to be used to construct the dual slalom course.

County Parks and Recreation Director Chris Kummer said work will begin soon on getting bids to construct the course.