'The Junction,' Main Street looking toward North Avenue, a proposed start of the eventual converted rail path. (COURTESY PHOTO)
September 7, 2006
WAKEFIELD OBSERVER
By Travis Lovettt, Correspondent
'The Junction,' Main Street looking toward North Avenue, a proposed start of the eventual converted rail path. (COURTESY PHOTO)
Despite a number of setbacks, the Wakefield Rail-to-Trail committee is determined to keep pushing forward until four-and-a-half miles of trashed, abandoned MBTA rail line is converted into a linear park that can be used by pedestrians and bicycle enthusiasts.
"It's abandoned, it's trespassed on, it's littered on, it's a mess," said Dot Halpin, recording secretary of Wakefield's Rail-to-Trail committee.
The proposed trail would start at Wakefield Junction and follow along the abandoned MBTA commuter rail line to Reedy Meadow in Lynnfield. The project has been delayed because the town needed to acquire "easement rights" for the land and find a way to pay for environmental liability insurance. It will be at least a month before that process is completed. Then negotiations can begin with the MBTA about a tease agreement.
According to an October 2004 report published by the Rail-to-Trail Conservancy, environmental liability insurance is necessary because rail corridors may be polluted by oil, creosote (a wood-treating chemical), asbestos and arsenic. Without insurance, the town would be held liable for any harm caused by any pollutants on the property.
Halpin said town officials worked with state legislators to secure environmental liability insurance in July.
"We were thinking this is a done deal." Halpin said.
After resolving the insurance issue, the committee found out that the easement rights for the land had been transferred to a new company. The MBTA leased out the land and easement rights to Guilford Transportation Industries (GIT). The committee was told by GTI that they would give up easement rights to the rail, but GTI recently underwent a name change and became Pan Am Railways. This further slowed down the town's attempt to acquire the easement rights.
When GTI changed names they also hired a new lawyer, Halpin said.
"The new lawyer said there is no reason [the project] won't go through," Halpin said. The committee keeps pushing the project forward because it would provide residents with an alternative to walking around Lake Quannapowitt. It also would provide a safe path for bicycle riders.
"It's such a great chance for people to get out and enjoy nature," Halpin said.
Halpin and her husband, Emmett, have been promoting the idea of a pedestrian and bike trail in town since 1995. Both Dot and Emmett Halpin are avid bicycle riders.
"We've always had positive responses [about the project]," Halpin said.
Halpin and the other committee members are looking for new ways to raise funds for the project. The town and the Reedy Meadow Foundation initially funded the project.
"It will be essential for us to devise a funding strategy that will rely primarily on state grants, federal grants and private giving," said Selectman Al Turco.
Turco also expressed concerns about the leasing situation.
"We will need to negotiate a lease with the MBTA that will adequately protect the interest of the town," Turco said.
Halpin said she is determined to make the project work.
"There's more paperwork than I care to think about," Halpin said. "But we are committed and truly are trying our best to get this accomplished." A five to 10-year timetable is estimated for completion of the project.
The Rail-to-Trail committee holds public meetings on the second Thursday of every month at 7 p.m. in the Wakefield Town Hall second floor conference room.