Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Infrastructure Impact topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
MassDOT shared‑use path will require removal of trees at 170 Rocky Hill Road; UFC notes mitigation plan
Summary
Commissioners were briefed on a MassDOT project that will remove multiple trees at 170 Rocky Hill Road to build a shared‑use path. The chair said the removals were unavoidable due to embankment work and that the property owner agreed to pay tree mitigation funds to plant replacement trees in the public right‑of‑way.
The chair reported on a public shade‑tree hearing held Dec. 5 for a MassDOT shared‑use path at 170 Rocky Hill Road that requires the removal of multiple trees to accommodate embankment work for the new path.
Explaining the engineering constraints, the chair said root zones would be compromised and there was "absolutely no way to save them" because the project requires moving the embankment and constructing a retaining wall. The project is out to bid and construction is expected to begin in spring.
The chair said Carolyn has agreed to pay mitigation through the city's tree mitigation fund to replace the removed trees in appropriate public right‑of‑way locations and staff will coordinate planting and placement. Commissioners asked whether mitigation planting could occur in the same ward or nearby when feasible, and the chair said planting decisions will follow available locations and the mitigation fund process.
No formal vote was taken on the project during the meeting; the commission said staff will follow up on specific mitigation locations and planting schedules ahead of construction.
