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Commission approves rain garden, pollinator plantings and signage at Morris Road on Bruce Freeman Rail Trail
Summary
The Conservation Commission approved a minor modification to the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail order of conditions to permit a rain garden, pollinator plantings and educational signage at Morris Road; project partners include OARS, Yard and a Half, the Sudbury Foundation and the Thursday Garden Club of Sudbury.
The Town of Sudbury Conservation Commission voted to issue a minor modification to the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail (BFRT) order of conditions approving installation of a rain garden, pollinator plantings and signage at the Morris Road access point.
Heather Cockerton, ecological restoration coordinator with OARS (the Sudbury, Assabet and Concord rivers watershed organization), described rain gardens as a nature-based stormwater solution. "They're a great nature based solution, and they help manage stormwater, they reduce flooding, they recharge ground water, and they also create these beautiful areas for pollinators," she said. Clay Larson, a landscape contractor with Yard and a Half, presented planting and erosion-control details, including coconut coir logs to stabilize the stream slope and boulder placement to create an upland planting bed.
OARS secured a grant from the Sudbury Foundation and has engaged the Thursday Garden Club of Sudbury for the planting day; the project includes volunteer participation and planned oversight by contractor staff. A planting day has been tentatively scheduled for Friday, May 23, pending confirmation. Laurie, the conservation agent, said the project is mostly within the MassDOT right-of-way and that she has requested permission from MassDOT as a minor modification to the original rail-trail project.
Commissioners asked about construction oversight and long-term maintenance. Contractors and OARS representatives said they will supervise volunteer planting and that the Conservation Department will assume seasonal watering and future pruning. The commission voted to authorize the minor modification "to the BFRT order of condition to permit this work to commence as soon as weather permits." The motion passed by voice vote.
Project partners said interpretive signage with a QR code will be installed to explain the rain garden's function and native plant palette to trail users. OARS said the plant palette will use native species chosen for pollinator value and flood/drought tolerance.
