Rail-trail committee unanimously recommends select board accept Friends’ sculpture gift and use $15,000 in CPC funds for installation

Amy Sarley, representing Len Simon and the Friends of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail, presented a proposed sculpture for installation along the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail. The sculpture would incorporate metal artifacts from the railroad and measure roughly 5 feet tall by 6 feet wide; the Friends committed up to $15,000 toward the piece and asked the committee to recommend the select board accept the gift and to recommend using $15,000 from the Town’s 2022 CPC Article 47 allocation for siting and installation costs.

Amy said the Friends and project proponents are coordinating with the town manager and the fire department for safe handling of salvaged rail pieces and that designers plan anti-graffiti coatings and finishes to avoid accelerated corrosion. Committee members discussed candidate sites (Parkinson Field base, Morse Road, and the Diamond Junction) and expressed preference that the sculpture be prominent but not create congestion at a high-traffic junction; members raised concerns about anchoring, vandalism, material finish and whether children could climb on the piece, and Amy said the design team has revised the sculpture to reduce climbability and will specify coatings and anchoring details.

The committee considered two related recommendations: (1) recommend the select board accept the gift of the sculpture from the Friends; (2) recommend the select board approve use of $15,000 from CPC Article 47 (2022 allocation) for siting and installation. Both motions were moved and seconded; the advisory committee voted unanimously in favor of both recommendations and will forward them to the select board for formal action.