Bruce Freeman Rail Trail Parking Coming to Acton Sooner Than Expected

The Town of Westford has announced they are seeking to establish a working group to make the "Acton Plan" a reality, due in large part to unexpected funding recommended by the Boston Metropolitan Planning Organization.

  Yesterday, the Town of Westford announced it wants volunteers for a working group aimed towards coordinating the proposed Bruce Freeman Rail Trail extension and parking lot in Acton, also known over the past few months as "the Acton Plan." Any hopes of the plan coming to fruition were expected to take decades, even though it appeared to have a positive reaction from factions for and against proposed rail trail parking lots in Westford.  That was until last week, when Land Use Management Director Angus Jennings informed the Planning Board that the Boston Metropolitan Planning Organization (BMPO) voted to recommend Phase 2A of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail, which extends from Westford into Carlisle and Acton.  "No one saw this coming," said…

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Girl Scouts Celebrate 100 Years With Bruce Freeman Cleanup

Westford's Girl Scouts assembled near Hart Pond in Chelmsford to pick up litter as part of their 100th Anniversary celebration.

Organized by Heidi Teirney and Jean LaRoche-Owens, Girl Scouts from Westford and Chelmsford got together at Hart Pond to celebrate 100 years of Girl Scouts by spending 100 minutes picking up 100 pieces of litter. The girls also raised money for S.H.A.R.E. (the Support Her Activities, Resources, and Experiences). which supports girls in the area, and was co-sponsored by Lowell General Hospital. For more information, please contact Westford Girl Scout Leaders & Event Co-Chairs, Heidi Tierney / intothewoods3@comcast.net  (978.392.0470) or Jean LaRoche-Owens / jlarocheowens@comcast.net (978-392-0909).

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Westford Votes

2012 Town Meeting Preview Part 3: Bruce Freeman Rail Trail

There are several warrant articles on this Saturday's Town Meeting warrant having to do with the long contested nature path in the southeastern part of town. What happens could affect Acton and Chelmsford along with Westford.

  Today, part three of our five part series on this Saturday’s Westford Town Meeting looks at the five warrant articles having to do with the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail. Articles 14 and 15: These two articles are identical, and Article 14, which was brought forth by the Selectmen, is likely going to be dismissed so there are not duplicate votes on the same issue. Article 15, which came from a citizens’ petition, asks the town to appropriate a sum of $5,000 for surveying and technical work to develop parking inside Westford near the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail. The view of supporters is that every other trail in town has parking facilities, and the demand for parking along the Bruce Freeman Trail has caused issues for those looking to access the…

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Andrew Sylvia

2:26 pm on Monday, March 26, 2012

Hi William, Thanks for the clarification.   more ›

You Asked, Patch Answers

Why Wasn't the Rail Trail Built Handicapped Accessible?

We tackle the question for You Ask, Patch Answers.

  Question: After Chelmsford Patch posted about the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail asking for donations for one stretch in Chelmsford to become handicapped accessible, a reader asked us why it wasn't made accessible to begin with.   Answer:  We pointed this question to Cindy McLain of the Friends of Bruce Freeman Rail Trail. Her response follows: "The trail was indeed designed and constructed in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The project was also subject to the standard public input process. The design reflects concerns expressed by abutters during design hearings. The roughly 1/4 mile section of trail between Old Town Hall and Chelmsford Street (Rt. 110) in Chelmsford was designed and constructed with an uninterrupted line…

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Over A Hundred Brave Snow for Bruce Freeman Info Session

The issue of parking along the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail wasn't settled at the Stony Brook School on Wednesday night, but there was plenty of information and passionate discussion in what may be a foreshadowing of Town Meeting.

Over 100 local residents and town officials braved the snow to attend Wednesday night’s informational meeting at the Stony Brook School on the continuing Bruce Freeman Rail Trail parking issue. Following setbacks with the proposed “Acton Plan” coming from the previous meeting on the trail in August at the J.V Fletcher Library, the meeting moderated by Westford town planner Chris Kluchman was designed to help inform the public on the issue while also helping town official better understand the concerns of residents. Westford director of land use planning Angus Jennings began the informational portion of the meeting with updates on what the town has done since the August meeting, which was followed by questions from the audience and what is …

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Bruce Freeman Rail Trail Facts for Tonight

If you need some information on the controversial topic in Westford's Acton Road neighborhood, look no further.

If you're a Westford Patch fan, you might have noticed that we're big on condensing topics into five things. But when it comes to the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail and the meeting on that topic tonight at the Stony Brook School, there's much more than five... Here's just a few things to get you caught up. What is the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail?: The idea came from former Chelmsford state representative Bruce Freeman, who enjoyed biking on other trails elsewhere in the country. The first meeting for a trail along the abandoned Penn Central rail line heading from Lowell to Framingham was established in 1985, but Freeman died a year later. In 1987, a bill in the Massachusetts State Legislature named the proposed trail after him. Phase One of the …

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Friends of Rail Trail Asking for Public's Help for Handicapped Accessibility

The town of Chelmsford doesn't have the money to pay for making the trail handicapped accessible, so the Friends of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail are asking for donations.

The Friends of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail is looking for donations to help make the trail handicapped accessible. Cindy McLain of the Friends said the town has agreed to install two handicapped openings in the trail at the request of local businesses. The openings will be in the section of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail between Old Town Hall and Chelmsford Street - with one opening will be at Subway on Chelmsford Street and the other opening at Zesty’s Pizza on Fletcher Street. The openings will allow trail users to access businesses from the trail without climbing over the railings, she said. The town received a bid of $5,200 for this job but does not have the money to undertake the work, McLain said. The Chelmsford Bicycle and Pedestrian…

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Andrew Sylvia

9:48 pm on Saturday, March 10, 2012

Kathleen, That's probably a question best posed to Krista over in Chelmsford. She'd know better than me.   more ›

You Asked, Patch Answers

What Happened to the Bruce Freman Rail Trail Parking Lot in Acton?

Welcome to the latest "You Asked, Patch Answers", our weekly column where we answer questions from you, the readers of Westford Patch. To ask us a question, e-mail us at westford@patch.com

The clear consensus from town leaders after the large meeting in August to determine a solution for parking along the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail was trying to put a parking lot in Acton. But one Westford Patch reader asked us whatever happened to that parking lot....We have the answer. Originally, the town hoped for a MassWorks grant in December to help fund the parking lot project, building it ahead of the scheduled expansion of the trail into Acton. However, the project ultimately was not chosen. So, is the parking lot in Acton idea dead? Not exactly. The funding issue can be resolved through the Iron Horse Preservation Group, a non-profit organization that removes old railroad ties from proposed rail trails and then sells them for money …

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Selectmen Vote Access to Rights of Way for Bruce Freeman Rail Trail

An agreement related to surveying the rights of way on parcels near the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail requires the vote of the Selectmen in four towns, including Westford, which approved the measure 4-1-0 on Tuesday night.

Another step in Phase 2 of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail has been completed as the Westford Board of Selectmen voted by a margin of 4-1 to approve right of entry to survey on right of ways near the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail. The agreement was written by Acton Town Planner Roland Bartl. It requires approval from the Board of Selectmen of the four towns along Phase 2 of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail (Westford, Carlisle, Acton and Concord) due to an inter-municipal agreement that the towns entered into related to the trail in 2009. If approved by the boards of all four towns, the agreement allows an agent of the four towns access from the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (Mass DOT) for surveying on adjacent rights of way near parcels …

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