BOSTON – State and local officials are celebrating the awarding of a $200,000 MassTrails grant to the Town of Lynnfield to provide support for the Wakefield-Lynnfield Rail Trail Project.
The grant funds will be used for continuing design on the 2.8-mile rail trail from Fosters Lane in Wakefield through Lynnfield to Nichols Lane in Peabody. Lynnfield will provide a local match.
A total of $12 million in 2024 MassTrails grant funding was recently approved to support 65 trail improvement projects across Massachusetts, including Lynnfield’s. The awards were announced by Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) Secretary Rebecca Tepper and Department of Conservation and Recreation Commissioner Brian Arrigo at a June 21 ceremony along the Upper Charles Trail in Holliston’s Blair Square.
Speaking on behalf of all 2024 grant recipients, Arrigo noted that trail networks “serve as the backbone of our communities, creating connections between neighborhoods and cities and towns that foster tourism and economic growth, provide opportunities for green transportation that help us reach our climate goals, and give people access to our beautiful natural resources that we know are important to our wellbeing. These investments also support a shared stake and stewardship in our parklands, open spaces, and trails fostering a sense of community and involvement we hope will continue for generations to come.”
Among the Lynnfield attendees who were present to receive the award were Friends of the Lynnfield Rail Trail President Vincent Inglese, Friends of the Lynnfield Rail Trail members Richard Kosian and Ken MacNulty, and Lynnfield Conservation Commission Assistant Jennifer Welter.
“Friends of the Lynnfield Rail Trail is thankful for the collaboration of the Mass Trails program, MassDOT, DCR, the Healey-Driscoll Administration, state legislators Sen. Brendan Crighton and Rep. Brad Jones, as well as our town officials for their support in this effort,” Inglese said.
“Congratulations to the many dedicated town officials and local volunteers from the Friends of the Lynnfield Rail Trail for successfully securing this funding award,” Jones said. “This MassTrails grant will help to further the ongoing efforts to establish an environmentally-friendly alternative means of transportation within the community and to create expanded recreational opportunities for all residents to enjoy.”
“This is a great opportunity for Lynnfield,” Crighton said. “The grant will support residents’ access to various options for transportation and outdoor recreation, which will, in turn, support the entire community. Congratulations and thank you to the Friends of the Lynnfield Rail Trail and Lynnfield town officials for your commitment to this project.”
Lynnfield Capital Program Director John Scenna is now fully managing the Rail Trail Project efforts alongside Lynnfield DPW Director & Town Engineer John Tomasz. The Rail Trail will be constructed along the southern section of the former Newburyport Railroad that previously connected Lynnfield to Newburyport. This corridor connects, via Peabody and Danvers, to the Border to Boston Trail, which is a proposed 30-mile rail trail that will link the communities of Danvers, Wenham, Topsfield, Boxford, Georgetown, Newbury, Newburyport, and Salisbury.
Most recently, Lynnfield and MassDOT have worked collaboratively in phasing the project design and construction into two parts. The first phase is nearing 75% design and will be submitted to MassDOT within the next few weeks to begin review. This first phase is proposed from Nichols Lane in Peabody to Ford Avenue in Lynnfield. The project team will seek to connect the trail to both the Lynnfield High School and Lynnfield Middle School campuses and athletic facilities with this phase. Lynnfield remains hopeful the first segment can realize construction funding as early as FY26. Phase 2 design from Ford Avenue through Ready Meadow to Fosters Lane in Wakefield, will continue in parallel with efforts on Phase 1.
“We remain equally committed to bringing both phases of this project to completion. Collectively, we felt that a phased approach will present Lynnfield with an opportunity to begin using the trail sooner than originally planned,” Town Administrator Robert Dolan said.
Lynnfield officials envision the Rail Trail as a centrally located recreation path that will be fully compliant with the federal Americans with Disabilities Act and will provide connections to many popular local landmarks, including Reedy Meadow, the Lynnfield Middle School, Bethlehem School at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, and Lynnfield High School. The Rail Trail will also pass within a quarter mile of the Summer Street School, Lynnfield Library, Lynnfield Town Hall and renovated Public Safety Facility, and the Town’s center commercial district.
MassTrails notes on its website that it “seeks to expand and connect the Commonwealth’s networks of off-road, shared-use pathways, and recreational trails for all users across Massachusetts … by providing matching grants, technical assistance, and resources to individuals, municipalities, Native nations, non-profits, and other public entities to design, construct, and maintain high quality Massachusetts trails.” All grant applications are reviewed by the inter-agency MassTrails Team, which is comprised of representatives from MassDOT, EEA, DCR, and the Massachusetts Recreational Trails Advisory Board (MARTAB).
More information on the MassTrails grant program is available at https://www.mass.gov/welcome-to-masstrails.
