City Affair is hosting a picnic event Thursday evening that will include a walking tour of the Iron Horse Trestle, an electric rail viaduct just north of downtown that's slated to become an elevated linear park.

Paris has the Promenade Plantee, New York City has The High Line, and, as highlighted in a St. Louis Post-Dispatch story earlier this summer, St. Louis is in a race with Chicago and Philadelphia to create the third such park.

Todd Antoine, Deputy Director of Planning for Great Rivers Greenway, the group leading efforts to build the park, will discuss how they plan to use the trestle-park to connect downtown, Columbus Square, and Old North St. Louis to the Riverfront Trail.

Phil Valko, Active Living Program Manager at Trailnet, will also be on hand to discuss plans to rebuild Branch Street as a seamless at-grade connector between Old North St. Louis and Hyde Park and the Riverfront.

And Jennifer Allen, program coordinator for Trailnet, will talk about St. Louis Development Corporation’s request for proposals for 3,000 acres of the North Riverfront.

PICNIC DETAILS

Time: 7 p.m., Thursday, July 7

Place: The corner of Howard and Hadley

Eats: City Affair will supply grilling apparatus, fuel, plates and cups. They encourage you to buy picnic supplies, including farm-fresh produce and meat, soda and other staples, at Old North Grocery Co-op, 2718 North 13th Street. It's eight blocks from the picnic site and open until 7 pm. It does not sell beer, so bring your own if you need it.

Note: Todd Antoine will begin the walking tour of the Iron Horse Trestle at 7:45 p.m.