Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Greenway And Annual Report topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
West Concord advisory committee advances annual report and floats a ‘Greenway’ to highlight local parks and waterways
Summary
Committee members reviewed a draft annual report and discussed a proposed West Concord Greenway—a low-cost program of signage, maps and partnerships to link local parks, ponds and trails and prepare for future development of the MCI Concord site and Junction Village.
At its January meeting, the West Concord Advisory Committee reviewed a near-final draft of its annual report and discussed a proposed “West Concord Greenway” to promote and protect parks, ponds and trails near the village.
Committee member Anna Feldweg walked the group through a slide presentation that identifies green and blue resources reachable on foot or by rail-trail from the village: Bruce Freeman Rail Trail access points, Warner’s Pond (and a recently completed pavilion), Giroux Park and its boat launch on Commonwealth Avenue, Nashoba Brook, Junction Park, Rideout Park, West Concord Park/Pigeon Hill trails, and the Assabet River bluff trail. The committee discussed pairing simple signage, a downloadable map and occasional walkabouts with cultural-district art installations as a low-cost way to highlight those assets and to help shape future development on the MCI Concord land and the adjacent Junction Village.
The presentation tied the idea to two development drivers the committee expects to affect West Concord in coming years: the MBTA Communities Act and the pending reuse of land at MCI Concord. Members said the Greenway concept is intended to position the village to press developers and town planners to preserve and connect open space as new housing and commercial projects move forward.
Resident Krista Collins, who participated in a past design effort for the Junction Village parcel, praised the idea: “I love this whole Greenway idea, and it'd be really great to see that connection made,” she told the committee. Members discussed practical next steps: posting the slide deck and a draft map on the committee’s page, coordinating with the West Concord Junction Cultural District Committee on small public-art tie-ins, producing a simple map for distribution, and exploring potential funding routes such as Community Preservation Committee grants for signage or wayfinding.
The committee agreed to circulate the slides and to ask town staff (Elizabeth and Heather) to post materials online so residents and other boards can review the concept. Members also discussed scheduling a walkabout with partner committees and preparing a short set of actions the WCAC could pursue in 2025, beginning with a draft map and outreach to natural-resources and trails volunteers.
