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Council weighs rail‑trail expansion and pulls prior grant to pursue new transportation‑alternatives funding
Summary
Council discussed reactivating a previously approved rail‑trail right‑of‑way extension and signaled intent to withdraw from an older grant and reapply under the current Transportation Alternatives program; staff reported an RFP for rail‑trail work is expected soon and a placeholder $2 million capital estimate appears in the FY27 draft.
Councilors discussed advancing the railroad right‑of‑way extension toward the town limits and re‑energizing previously approved trail segments after staff reported new procurement activity.
Several councilors noted the piece of the trail that remains in red on the map already had approvals from many state agencies years ago and urged moving forward; staff said an RFP for rail‑trail expansion should be issued by the end of the week. The capital plan currently contains a placeholder construction budget of approximately $2 million spread across multiple years for the extension and associated trail work.
On an adjacent transportation item, staff said they will submit a letter to withdraw from a prior grant pipeline and pursue the current Transportation Alternatives grant round, which is open through the end of April. Councilors debated alignment options (one alternative runs closer to existing right‑of‑way and another would route through Woodseshire Avenue), weighing safety, community impacts and prior agency feedback. Council members urged parallel pursuit of feasible town limits extensions while also continuing other walkability efforts.
What happens next: staff are collecting prior design and agency approvals to support reapplication and said they would circulate the RFP and updated budget and schedule to the council when available.
