Conservation director asks finance committee to budget major maintenance for trails and bridges

Jennifer Miller, Westborough’s conservation director, told the Finance Committee the town needs a dedicated capital allocation for major maintenance of the town’s conservation infrastructure, not routine trail upkeep funded from the general fund. Miller said the town owns more than 1,000 acres of passive‑recreation land and maintains over 50 miles of trails that now face simultaneous, aging infrastructure failures.

Miller highlighted a failed bridge over Piccadilly Brook near Upton Road that she said was likely installed decades ago and was showing decking failure, hazardous handrails and separation from its bank. She presented rough cost estimates: a smaller span recently replaced cost between $20,000 and $25,000, while a longer, fully engineered replacement — including engineered abutments — is estimated at about $75,000 to $85,000. Miller said an engineer recommended fiberglass construction for longer service life, which she said would add roughly $10,000 but could double expected useful life compared with wood.

Miller distinguished these requests from ordinary maintenance (trail tread work, pavilion painting), describing them as high‑cost, infrequent projects that require specialized design and equipment. She said volunteers and partner organizations such as the Westborough Community Land Trust (WCLT) remain important but no longer provide the workforce or technical capacity for larger bridge and structural work.

Committee members pressed for budgeting detail. One member asked whether the town’s plan assumes a flat $35,000 annual allocation and whether money would be banked for larger projects; Miller said the $35,000 figure is a buffer to cover multiple small projects or to bank for a larger one, but that she would pursue alternative grants (CPC, MassTrails, ARPA, other sources) for projects that exceed the town’s annual allocation. She also noted that ADA upgrades typically add modest additional cost in many cases (she cited an example of about $4,000) but provide access benefits to users beyond wheelchair access.

Miller said the conservation office is conducting assessments across town (she showed a partial assessment of Bowman Conservation Area that listed about 40 items) and will bring project‑specific estimates and grant opportunities forward as individual FY27–30 requests crystallize. The committee asked for greater cost specificity as each project comes to the capital process.

The committee did not take final action on funding at the meeting; members asked staff to provide more detailed project cost estimates when specific projects are proposed and to pursue external grants and partnerships where feasible.