June 20th, 2022 by WCBC Radio

Advocates for a proposed River Park project at Canal Place are in a holding pattern- awaiting the outcome of a recent meeting to determine if federal and state environmental conditions will be met by the project. The proposed $20 million project includes installing a moderate whitewater course on the Potomac River behind Canal Place along with docks for canoes and kayaks and walking trails. A key feature of the project would include removing the dam beneath the Blue Bridge linking Cumberland and Ridgeley, West Virginia. Canal Place Director Dee Dee Ritchie said the problem centers around the level of impact the project would have on the Potomac River's health. She said a meeting with state and federal officials earlier this month provided a last shot to provide ecological justification for the project. Cumberland Mayor Ray Morriss calls it another case of bureaucratic red tape stalling a key economic development project for the region…