Georgetown Recreational Path Committee
Dick Paganelli - chair
Dick Boucher- member
Bob Morehouse - member
Jim Page – member
Alana Schmitt – Volunteer
Teri Roche – Volunteer
Shaun Roche - Volunteer

Who is the Georgetown Recreational Path Committee?
The committee is a Georgetown committee appointed by the Board of Selectmen.  The current committee was formed in March of 2003 to determine the feasibility of developing a recreational pathway along 4.6 miles of the power line transmission & former railway corridor.

What is the committee’s mission?
To enrich Georgetown’s community and countryside by creating a public trail from former rail lines and connecting corridors.

What is our goal?
To create a tangible community asset used for recreation, transportation, health, conservation, revitalization and connectivity.
 

Possible uses (all non-motorized) for the path include:
 

• Walking
•  Jogging
• Pushing strollers
• Walking dogs (on leash)
• Bicycling
• Cross country skiing
• Snow shoeing
• Birdwatching
• Hiking trail access
• Fishing

Our Request?
We’d like to receive financial support from Georgetown CPC under the Recreational Land use  category.

Please allocate funding to the Georgetown Recreational Path Committee as seed money for developing our plans and to pursue this important and beneficial issue.  We request $30,000 from the Georgetown CPA funds.  We plan to use this money during the next 12-18 months as follows:

• Investigate, educate, communicate and integrate:  Assess town resident interest (1995 Master Plan committee survey shows over 80% of residents are in favor), use experts in Rails-Trails projects to build interest and guide planning, hold informational sessions, conduct scientifically sound quantitative market research, determine uses community would utilize and incorporate input from citizens into our final plan.
• Investigate:  Conduct a preliminary engineering investigation consisting of collection and analysis of available information such as soils, vegetation, topography,drainage, man made features, property lines, previous studies andsurveys. This data shall be verified in the field by observation, handaugur borings, and spot surveys and measurements. The investigation will be used to determine exact location of the trail (on or off the rail bed, compliance with Mass Electric rule) and to develop additional information as necessary to:
• Prepare general statements regarding the scope and feasibility of the proposed project
• Obtain Construction Engineering analysis and a conceptual design
• Barriers to implementation
• Feasible options to consider
• General plan and sequence of major activities which need to be performed prior to drafting a design plan
• Estimate of the cost to prepare the project in final design and to construct it.
• Assess and resolve concerns: Massachusetts Electric Company (MEC) has stated that they are considering our proposal for licensing.  They have brought 4 main areas for the town to address (liability, environmental, operational, abutters concerns) however, in each area, MEC has also suggested possible resolutions to each item.  The obligation is ours, however, to submit formal proposals for resolution.
• Evaluate and mitigate any legal issues including any abutter concerns, land use or ownership issues and any right-of-way issues.