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Parks advisory committee backs recommending ‘Talbot Trail’ name for Stillwater connector
Summary
The Bangor City Parks, Recreation and Harbor Advisory Committee agreed to move forward with a recommendation to the Talbot family and city council to name a recently funded multi-use connection the Talbot Trail, and discussed small amenities such as benches and signage to accompany the designation.
The Bangor City Parks, Recreation and Harbor Advisory Committee on April 10 discussed recommending that the portion of a multi-use trail the city funded from behind Rangeley Hall to the sidewalk on Stillwater Avenue be named Talbot Trail in honor of Gerald Talbot.
Marie Tulep, parks and recreation director, said the segment under discussion is part of a larger set of connections identified in the 2008–09 Bangor Trails Report and noted the city received state multi-use trail funding to construct the portion that runs along the bottom of the northbound Stillwater off-ramp. “We’re hoping … if we can at least recommend to the family,” Tulep said, “we’ll move forward with that.”
The proposed connection begins at Cascade Park, passes through Saksal Park and the Eastern Maine Community College campus, crosses Mount Hope Avenue, and continues up Sylvan Road to the area behind Rangeley Hall before reaching Stillwater Avenue, committee members said. Committee members said the full continuous route is a longer-term vision dependent on multiple landowners and agencies, but that the grant-funded portion is entirely within city control and therefore eligible for a city naming recommendation.
Committee members discussed modest accompanying improvements such as small benches or a plaque to mark the designation. John Hyatt, committee member, and others raised respect for different uses of benches but agreed that a modest commemorative element could be appropriate. “It is a nice multi-use paved, walking trail that we keep open year round,” Tulep said, describing maintenance and winter plowing for the paved segment.
The committee did not take a formal, recorded vote during the discussion but indicated consensus to proceed with a recommendation to the Talbot family and to advance the naming as a staff recommendation to the council if the family supports it. Tulep said further outreach would include coordination with Eastern Maine Community College and state transportation changes related to upcoming DOT bridge work that may create opportunities for future pedestrian improvements.
The committee requested staff return with any required next steps for formal council action and suggested modest site improvements and interpretive signage as part of the recommended recognition.
