By Marianne Goodine, Treasurer, Eastern Trail Management District
[Note: This article appeared in the Late Fall 2013 Newsletter. The full newsletter can be viewed in this pdf document]
With the Eastern Trail making its way southward, a very energetic group of trail enthusiasts has been meeting monthly in Wells to collaborate on ways to continue the trail. This group represents the Southern Eastern Trail Alliance (SETA) and consists of representatives from Wells, North Berwick, York, Kittery, and South Berwick.
The group is focused on ideas for fundraising and getting more exposure for the trail. During the summer of 2013 we set up an informational booth at local events such as the Kittery Block Party, Senior Expo in Kennebunk, Wells HarborFest , and the Millfield Festival in North Berwick. We are currently seeking interested individuals to become members of the Eastern Trail Alliance.
The 20+ miles of completed trail has been used by countless numbers of walkers, hikers, bikers, equestrians and proves to be a very safe route for its users and a valuable asset to each community that it passes through. So far the greatest obstacle of the trail was building the bridge over the turnpike in Kennebunk. Many said it wouldn’t happen and yet it did.
The Towns of Kennebunk and Wells recently applied for a Transportation Enhancement grant through the Maine Department of Transportation for the design and engineering phase of the trail. Unfortunately, because of State budget cuts, the application was denied, creating another road block in our efforts to continue the trail south. This setback has made it all the more important for us to seek other alternatives for funding, which the SETA group is currently investigating.
I and many other citizens of southern York County communities strongly support efforts to bring the trail south. It is a tremendous asset and a safe route for all to enjoy whether you’re walking, biking, running, jogging, or just enjoying a morning, afternoon or evening stroll. Every dollar spent will give back so much more. Let’s all put on our thinking caps and find ways to continue the trail southward to the New Hampshire boarder, including sources of alternative funding for trail development.
[Note: This article appeared in the Late Fall 2013 Newsletter. The full newsletter can be viewed in this pdf document]
In the next to last week of October I hit the jackpot. No trip to Foxwoods, or Oxford for that matter, involved. And I haven’t bought a Powerball ticket … uh, ever. Instead, I had the opportunity to chat about the Eastern Trail at three separate events, and this wasn’t a case of the ETA begging for a chance to set up a table so we could try to sell folks on the Trail.
Nope, the ETA was actually invited to attend three meetings and participate in panel discussions; these groups really wanted to hear about the Trail, even though, per a show of hands at the latter two events, the majority of attendees were already familiar with the ET.
On October 22 the second quarterly meeting of the York County Bicycle and Pedestrian Committee convened, the brainchild of the Bicycle Coalition of Maine and Southern Maine Planning and Development Commission (formerly Southern Maine Regional Planning Commission). There’s a lot happening on the bike and ped scene, and those who created the committee recognize the value of sharing experiences. So they invited three of us to offer input on the state of trails: Alix Hopkins, former executive director of Portland Trails, author and community activist, related progress to date on the Biddeford River Walk, including a planned pedestrian bridge that would span the Saco River in the Biddeford and Saco Historic Mills District. MaryAnn Conroy has just assumed the director’s role at the Kennebunk public works department, and is an ET veteran of sorts via her previous employment with the Town of Old Orchard Beach. The three of us and all attendees compared notes about funding.
The YCBPC meets quarterly, next time in Sanford to hear about that city’s ambitious trails plan. All welcome; contact Myranda McGowan (mmcgowan@smrpc.org) for more information.
Next afternoon Sustain Southern Maine hosted an information-sharing session on growing trail accessibility. Professor Jack Kartez explained the forum this way: “There is widespread consensus among both health and development experts that ready access to non-motorized trails linking people to the landscape they live in provides benefits and amenities needed for a successful area-wide economy attractive to a wide variety of people.”
This gathering, the seventh in a series that SSM hosts on topics that have included climate change, housing, energy, and locally grown foods, Trails and a Livable Southern Maine, included Jim Tasse of the BCM who spoke on the growing popularity of single-track bike trails, Steve Engle of the Maine Center for Community GIS, who maintains the Maine Trail Finder website, and Matt Craig of the Casco Bay Estuary Partnership. Jack and Kara Wooldrik, Executive Director of Portland Trails, hosted the panel discussion which examined how regional trails such as the ET are spawning local trails, creating a network of sustainable transportation and fitness options.
The third event of the week convened on the Eastern Trail in Kennebunk. Bob Bowker, ET vice president and Tim Cote, the project engineer for the Biddeford to Kennebunk section of the Trail, hosted members of the Maine chapter of the American Society of Civil Engineers for a tour on bike and foot. The group later convened for its dinner meeting in Scarborough, and listened to trail talk from Tim and co-HNTB employee Greg Blake, Nancy Grant of the BCM, Dan Stewart of Maine DOT, and me. Topics included funding options for trails (limited), current challenges to extending trails in Maine, and MDOT’s role.
While many of us look to our ‘leaders’ in Augusta and Washington and can only shake our heads, you can take encouragement from the fact that lots of people out there ‘get it,’ and are actively learning from and sharing the best of what is happening locally and regionally. We’re pleased that the ET is very much in the mix.
With six months still to go until the 2014 Maine Lighthouse Ride, the popularity of the ride is obvious — about 400 riders already pre-registered for the September 6 event. Riders represent over 20 states, including South Dakota, California, Colorado, Tennessee, Missouri, Texas, and Michigan. This year we also have riders from the United Kingdom and Canada. And let’s not forget our local folks, with strong contingents from Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Connecticut. We plan to continue to build on the success of last years’ 10th anniversary ride, which sold out at 1,000 riders three weeks before ride day. In response to the continuing surge in demand, we are increasing our rider limit to 1,200 riders this year. Anyone want to wager when the sellout date will fall?….Read the entire “Filling Up Fast” article here.
If there’s one thing that’s been constant since I attended my first Eastern Trail Alliance meeting, it’s been the M&Ms. Oh, no I guess that’s not true – there was quite a lapse for a time, now that I think about it. Fortunately, however, volunteers have not lapsed, and a couple of handfuls of these energetic, inspired folks continue to work at making the ET what it is and what it will become. Tom Daley, Maggie Warren, Mac Sexton, Larry Glantz –when the ETA Vol Hall of Fame is called to order, these are but a few of the many who will be in attendance. And I’ll bet, if asked, every one of them would agree that the experience was an enriching one. “We volunteered, we spent time with equally motivated people with common interests, we achieved, we made things happen.”…Read the entire “President’s Letter” article here.
Prior to and on October 13, 2013 (a Friday!) heavy rains covered over half a mile of the Biddeford section of the Eastern Trail with impassable flood waters. Reluctantly, we closed the trail, an unprecedented action. The ET website and ET Facebook page immediately relayed to trail users that we had informed Unitil and Biddeford’s department of public works and city manager that the section of the trail would be closed until further notice.
As a further complication, an event had been scheduled on that section of the trail for the following day. As you might imagine there was concern about how long the trail would be closed. But even more perplexing, was the question of how and why the flooding occurred. The trail had been open for over three years and had not flooded after many periods of prolonged heavy rains. What had changed?…Read the entire “Leave it to the Beavers” article here.
Do any of you remember the old waste water pipe bridge over the Dunstan River that meanders through the marsh? I’m sure you remember its replacement, the Eastern Trail Bridge that carries trail traffic while supporting both that pipe and the Granite State Gas Pipeline. I doesn’t seem possible, but ten years have already passed since the May 19, 2004 groundbreaking ceremony took place a few weeks after the accompanying photo was taken….Read the entire “Scarborough Marsh Groundbreaking Anniversary” article here.
Who uses the ET? Where do users come from? What does the average visitor spend on ice cream? Boots? Bicycles? Lodging? Beyond a little casual knowledge— I’ve met cyclists on the ET who came from Vermont, New York and Quebec just to bike the ET— we have no measured data. We intuit that these users must benefit local economies, but we haven’t yet quantified those benefits. How can we measure them? What have others done?
Carl Knoch, Northeast Trails Development Manager for the Rails to Trails Conservancy (RTC), wanted to answer these questions for a Pennsylvania trail. He electronically counted users and asked hundreds of Pennsylvania trail users to answer self-mailing questionnaires. With the results, he began to measure the trail’s economic impact, learning how many people….Read the entire “Economic Impact” article here.
The ET provides a space for recreation, transportation and socialization for all users. And sometimes it provides a lift when your life has hit some rough patches.
When Joe Yuhas’ wife Delpha was going through some intense stages of her illness, she and others urged Joe, her primary caregiver, to take a break each day. Her doctor’s office was on Route 1, near Scarborough Marsh. So, as Joe explains, “I would throw my bike in my truck, go to the doctor’s to pick up her prescriptions, then ride the trail for an hour or so,”
The exercise, the beauty of nature and the change always helped him find a path back to at least a small sense of balance. Shortly after his wife’s death, the dedication of the KAB section of the ET close to his home only reinforced the positive feelings he had about the trail….Read the entire “Joe Yuhas” article here.
The Southern ETA group has gained gratifying strength and numbers since last summer’s community displays and presentations. Those activities were designed to spread the word of the Eastern Trail and increase support at the grass roots level. Our awareness program showcased the far reaching benefits of the existing trail, as well as the benefits that will follow as the off road trail is extended to and through Wells, the Berwicks, Eliot and Kittery to connect with NH at the Memorial Bridge.
Since fall, SETA members have been meeting on a regular basis to explore and increase the effectiveness of our awareness program. Many new faces have been added to the group, increasing the pool of talent and imaginative ideas to accomplish our goals….Read the entire “SETA” article here.
In addition to events listed below, several groups are holding events on the Eastern Trail. For more information on these and how to apply to host an event on the trail, visit the Trail Events tab on the ETA website.
Ongoing: ETA volunteers lead monthly moonlight walks. Check website for details.
2nd Thursdays: Monthly ETA meeting – time and location posted on website.
May 15: ETA Annual Meeting at Old Marsh Country Club, Wells, ME
May 15: Walk for Wishes at Thornton Academy, Saco, ME
As we spring ahead and look forward to warmer weather, the Town of Wells is working together with the Town of Kennebunk to continue the trail southward through Wells to the North Berwick Town Line. Wells is currently putting the finishing touches on its Fiscal 2015 budget and will present to the Wells voters at the Annual Town Meeting on June 10 a funding article to “Undertake with the Town of Kennebunk preliminary design of the Eastern Trail through Wells and Kennebunk along the Granite State Gas Pipeline Transmission corridor.”….Read the entire “Wells Seeks Funding” article here.
After ten years, the word is out— the Maine Lighthouse Ride is one of the most popular bicycle rides in New England! Of course it’s hard to argue with miles of beautiful Maine coastline, great weather, and plenty of friendly volunteers. Having capped the ride at 1,000 riders due to concerns from our host communities, the Maine Lighthouse Ride was a complete sell-out three weeks before the ride. Yes, we must be doing something right!
This is the thing about a good meal: it’s like a play. If it’s done right, there’s an enormous amount of hustle and bustle behind the scenes, but all the audience usually sees—and enjoys–is the wonderfulness of the end product. As a result, those behind-the-scenes workers, whether they are costume designers or cooks, don’t always get the recognition they deserve.
In the next to last week of October I hit the jackpot. No trip to Foxwoods, or Oxford for that matter, involved. And I haven’t bought a Powerball ticket … uh, ever. Instead, I had the opportunity to chat about the Eastern Trail at three separate events, and this wasn’t a case of the ETA begging for a chance to set up a table so we could try to sell folks on the Trail.
Nope, the ETA was actually invited to attend three meetings and participate in panel discussions; these groups really wanted to hear about the Trail….Read the entire “Spreading the Word” article here.
With the Eastern Trail making its way southward, a very energetic group of trail enthusiasts has been meeting monthly in Wells to collaborate on ways to continue the trail. This group represents the Southern Eastern Trail Alliance (SETA) and consists of representatives from Wells, North Berwick, York, Kittery, and South Berwick.
If you build it, they will come! And so they did … by the thousands in Kittery and Portsmouth on August 8, 2013, to participate in the opening of the new Memorial Bridge! Although the morning was overcast with bad weather threatening, spirits were not dampened! Motorists, pedestrians, cyclists, boaters, kayakers — they all began arriving before 7:00 AM. Flags were raised, banners were flying, and excited chatter was deafening; until, that is, the band started to play and the parade of dignitaries, began to march from the Kittery side of the bridge to Portsmouth, where the ribbon cutting ceremony was to be held…..Read the entire “Memorial Bridge Opening” article here.
What is all that construction going on in Scarborough??
You may have noticed considerable evidence of construction at the Pine Point Road and Black Point Road intersections with the ET. I talked with the Scarborough Town Planner, Dan Bacon, and learned that the town has funded upwards of $400,000 for construction at those crucial points to improve traffic flow and, more important, to ensure the safety of pedestrians and bikers using the Eastern Trail…..Read the entire “What’s All That Construction?” article here.
According to Peggy Belanger RN, who is Cancer Care Coordinator and Oncology Nurse Navigator at Southern Maine Medical Center (SMMC), access to the Eastern Trail contributes greatly to the programs that she administers. The mere fact that the trail is in such close proximity to the medical center campus encourages creativity and innovation in programing for patients.
An off-road greenway is of little use to travelers without a way for them to navigate it, right? The ETA is continuously looking to disprove the local adage that “you can’t get there from here” [add appropriate downeast accent] with additional tools to show trail users where they are, and where they are going.
In addition to various resources available on our website, and our popular full-color Trail Guides, the ETA this year introduced a quick trifold map that outlines all the completed off-road sections of the ET. Better still, it is free because it is fully funded by Biddeford Savings Bank….Read the entire “Biddeford Savings Trail” article here.
For the third straight year approximately 120 third-grade students at Kennebunk Elementary School (KES) are riding bicycles during October physical education classes. Students are assessed the first week of biking as they ride the 1/2 loop around the school; only then can it be determined if the class is ready for the Eastern Trail. the program started at the beginning of the month there were 10 non-riders. Currently there are only four. The program will resume in May.
On September 28, 2011, Maine Turnpike Authority dedicated its Eastern Trail bridge, which it had built to close the most challenging gap in the Eastern Trail, a bridge that would allow the ET to connect the southern York County towns of Kennebunk, Wells, North Berwick, South Berwick Eliot and Kittery with the northern towns of Arundel, Biddeford, Saco, Old Orchard Beach, Scarborough and South Portland.
It’s also the happiest ET bridge, one of smiles and blasts— as you can see in these photos of two Kennebunk boys as they welcome truckers who often cause ecstatic joy with their friendly horn blasts…. Read the entire “Happiest Bridges in Maine” article here.
The summer of 2013 was a busy one for members of SETA, a subcommittee of ETA! Their enthusiasm and dedication were boundless, as the volunteers set up displays and presentations to spread the word of the Eastern Trail and build support at many seasonal outside events and celebrations, emphasizing that the ETA is now concentrating on bringing the trail to and through their towns and villages. Without exception, these York County missionaries reported successes and are eager to continue the efforts for better trail awareness moving south.
They are also proposing more ways to bring the ET experience to new people and communities, for example by organizing outings for youth groups, schools, and interested adults— cycling, cross-country skiing, evening walks… Read the entire “SETA Progress” article here.
The Eastern Trail began with a simple idea: to create a green transportation route for non-motorized travel through southern Maine. But for the growing number of activity groups and organizations now using the trail for a variety of events, the trail’s off-road sections are now, in themselves, also a regular destination.
Once again in 2013, the number of fundraising events hosted on at least part of the ET grew, totaling 15 this year. Returning events from last year included Southern Maine Medical’s Be Healthy 5K, the Rev3 Triathlon in Old Orchard Beach, and the Snowy Egret 5K Run/Walk… Read the entire “Event Organizers” article here.
No doubt most athletic fundraisers have their hidden stories of triumph over adversity, of difficult goals quietly reached. Certainly, those of us who plan and run the Maine Lighthouse Ride have heard or overheard a few of these stories over the years. We are grateful to be able to share one such story with you. Patrick Joyce, who rode the century in the 2013 MLR, found himself facing surgery that might have discouraged others from riding again. Patrick had another plan. Here, in his words, is his story:
The Eastern Trail Alliance is pleased to convey its thanks— and the thanks of 1,000 bicycling participants— to the partners who co-sponsored the 10th annual Maine Lighthouse Ride. Let us do a little scene-setting for you:
[Note: This article appeared in the Late Fall 2013 Newsletter. The full newsletter can be viewed in this pdf document]
This is the thing about a good meal: it’s like a play. If it’s done right, there’s an enormous amount of hustle and bustle behind the scenes, but all the audience usually sees—and enjoys–is the wonderfulness of the end product. As a result, those behind-the-scenes workers, whether they are costume designers or cooks, don’t always get the recognition they deserve. (all photos by Jim Bucar)
So let’s hear it for the “lunch ladies” of the ETA’s Maine Lighthouse Ride!— as they jokingly refer to themselves. Though they often go unseen by many of the riders, without them the end of the ride would be a lot less organized, efficient and friendly, and the riders a heck of a lot hungrier.
In 2008 the MLR base of operations moved to Southern Maine Community College (SMCC). Since that time, their leader, Patti Poole, has volunteered to plan, coordinate, and help prepare the end-of-the-ride meal. Mind you, most of the time she was also acting as the overall Volunteer Coordinator, a job she gratefully passed on this past year. Luckily for Patti, and for the MLR, for several years she has had a regular crew of volunteers—Pat Buckley, Cookie Kalloch and Jean Dufour—to make the task, if not easy, fun and well organized.
“We’re a well oiled machine,” Patti notes. “The core four of us have been doing it together for so long, we have it down.” Her crew says it’s Patti’s organizational skills that make it all run smoothly.
None of them remembers exactly when they started volunteering to help with the ETA, and they all became involved via different paths. Some came to the ETA via friends: for Patti it was Carole Brush, executive director of the ETA; Cookie thinks Jean brought her in; while Jean points to John Andrews, President Emeritus of the ETA, as her connection—a chain reaction of volunteerism. Others took a more direct route: Pat says she heard about a trail, thought it was a great idea, and called up the office to ask how she could help.
However, all know what first made them want to help the ETA: love of the outdoors and excitement at the idea of a trail that is to be part of a larger pathway stretching from Maine to Florida. All are avid hikers, bikers and/or runners. As an army officer’s wife, Cookie shipped her bike all over the world as she moved around from Europe to Kansas to Massachusetts, and Pat and Jean have hiked several sections of the Appalachian Trail (AT). Jean notes she is proud to have a son and grandson who have hiked the entire AT. Patti describes herself as “outdoorsy” and was on her way to hike a mountain when I caught her on her cell for this interview (note: she was not driving).
This love of outdoor recreation and volunteer spirit is reflected in the other volunteer work they do as well, both for the ET and other organizations. Patti is currently the treasurer and membership coordinator for Saco Trails and has served as its president; Jean was vice president of the Maine chapter of the AMC; Pat has hiked several sections of the AT and volunteers frequently for Portland Trails: and Cookie, along with helping with ETA mailings, also speaks persuasively about the ET at city and town meetings.
It’s a good thing they do love the outdoors and have such a strong spirit of volunteerism; they have a 12-hour day ahead of them at each year’s ride.
Their work actually starts months before as Patti begins planning the meal and procuring the ingredients, working with merchants and vendors to get the best price (free/donated is her preference). Then Cookie and Jean join her the night before at SMCC’s Culinary Arts building to help unload a mountain of boxes and shopping bags and set up the kitchen.
By 6 a.m. on the morning of the ride, Patti’s back in the kitchen, making sure there are refreshments available for the volunteers who have braved the early hour to help with the ride start. Cookie and Jean also arrive in the wee hours to help with rider packet distribution. After they and Pat join Patti in the kitchen around 10, the lunch/dinner prep swings into full speed ahead. They stir buckets of soup, chop a garden’s worth of vegetables, and toss mounds of salad, getting ready for the first wave of riders to return.
In the early years of the ride, they also served the meal. Patti notes they’ve been fortunate as the ride has grown to have “more and more volunteers” helping. Students from Interact, one of South Portland High School’s student clubs, have assisted in past years, and this year several seniors from the University of New England served the meal, freeing the “Core Four” to focus their attentions more on the actual cooking. The students’ help was very much appreciated. “I’m very impressed by them,” Jean notes. “They were very good”; the rest of the crew agrees.
Even with the students dishing up the food to the riders, the crew is still kept plenty busy prepping more food to refill the steam table (the chowder was an especially big hit with this year’s riders; last year it was the chili), salad bowls, veggie platters, and drinks. Other volunteers stand in awe of the crew’s stamina, commenting on their energy as they move back and forth among kitchen, dining room, and lobby. This energy is despite (or maybe because of?) the fact that, as Pat puts it, “None of us are spring chickens.”
Everyone’s least favorite chore, washing the dishes, is a part of their work too. One big assist at this year’s ride was finally learning how to operate the Culinary Arts industrial-sized commercial dishwasher. It only took “2-3 years,” Cookie notes wryly. Another accomplishment they are proud of is devising a new method to keep the chowder from scorching. All agree that developing better systems is one of the pleasures of the work. Jean also finds the way the ETA works with volunteers is a draw: “I like to support organizations that use their volunteers well.”
What keeps them working so hard in the kitchen, though, goes beyond that, to something that may have to do as much with the heart as the head. Cookie notes that as a runner in Europe she loved the sense of camaraderie of sharing a meal of brats with fellow runners after a race. She sees that same kind of camaraderie in the riders when they sit down to enjoy a bowl of chowder with someone they may not have known before that day. Cookie also notes that the riders really enjoy the healthy food choices Patti makes: “It’s good to serve food up that people really take to.”
Or as Pat puts it: “It makes me happy to prepare food. There’s a deep connection between feeder and diner, especially after a 100-mile ride.”
Note: There is one aspect of the day’s labor Patti, Cookie, Pat and Jean wouldn’t mind giving up. Their day begins, as noted, at 6 a.m. and often doesn’t end until 6 p.m. or later when they load up vehicles with leftover food and paper goods. It’s a smaller pile than when they started, but after a long day on their feet it can feel pretty heavy. And even with their new found mastery over the dishwasher, the last hour or so of clean up can be, well, a chore. They would love to have some volunteers who could come in “fresh” from about 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. to help with cleanup and loading vehicles. If you’re interested in doing this, please contact Brenda Edmands at bren.edmands@gmail.com or the ETA office at eta@easterntrail.org.
The Eastern Trail Alliance is pleased to convey its thanks— and the thanks of 1,200 bicycling participants— to the partners who co-sponsored the 12th annual Maine Lighthouse Ride. Let us do a little scene-setting for you:
It’s a beautiful, sunny day in southern Maine, the first Saturday after Labor Day. In the early morning, hundreds of vehicles loaded with bicycles converge on Southern Maine Community College’s beautiful seaside campus – the starting point of the MLR. Beginning at 7 a.m., a spectacular Casco Bay sunrise dazzles the cyclists who have chosen the 100-mile ride as they head out for a world-class day of coastal touring. They will follow a pre-determined course as far south as Kennebunkport, enjoying views of no fewer than eight classic Maine lighthouses along the way, their travels enhanced by dozens of volunteers who provide staffed rest stops and, when needed, help with minor repairs. Upon their return to South Portland the cyclists sit down to hot food and salad in an SMCC dining room – or outside under a tent — overlooking Casco Bay. Life, as they say, is good!
That day happened in September 2014, as it did for the ten years prior to that, in large part thanks to the support of sponsors like you. In turn, the MLR’s success will provide support for the continued development of the Eastern Trail: a 65-mile recreation/ transportation greenway connecting Casco Bay with Memorial Bridge in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and, in an equally true and larger sense, Maine with Florida via the East Coast Greenway. Thousands of users enjoy this “linear park“ for non-motorized commuting and recreational walking & biking, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, birding, nature study and many other human-powered, healthy activities. With its newest sections and highly visible bridges crossing Route 1 (Saco) and the Maine Turnpike (Kennebunk), the trail serves as a beacon to all that southern Maine has to offer (“Let’s go see where that bridge leads to, George!”).
“Continued development” is a key phrase here: about 21 miles of the eventual 65 mile trail are complete. An interim on-road ET exists from Kennebunk to Kittery, and those 40+ miles are the current goal. This vision of a completely off-road Eastern Trail will impact our communities in several ways: safer walking and biking for local families and tourists; reduced carbon emissions; increased real estate values; and spending by active outdoor participants.
Thanks again – you help make this all possible. And please consider signing up for continued duty as a Maine Lighthouse Ride sponsor – we’ll be happy to share that news with all our trail users and supporters! Happy Trails! (all photos by Jim Bucar)
The Scarborough Leader, by Michael Kelley Staff Writer
SCARBOROUGH — A scenic route connecting the Piscataqua River and Casco Bay is one step closer to being completed.
Last week Scarborough Town Planner Dan Bacon and representatives from the Eastern Trail Alliance unveiled a preliminary plan to extend the Eastern Trail in Scarborough to the Wainwright Recreation Complex, the beginning of South Portland’s Greenbelt Walkway.
The Greenbelt Walkway is a 5.7-mile trail that runs from the Scarborough/South Portland town line to Portland Breakwater Lighthouse in Bug Light Park. The Eastern Trail starts near Route 103 in Kittery and ends at the Nonesuch River in Scarborough.
The proposed 1-mile trail would rely heavily on Central Maine Power corridors to extend toward Pleasant Hill Road, across the Pan-Am railroad line and past the pond behind Pond Cove drive before crossing into South Portland and ending at the Wainwright complex.
Bacon said extending the Eastern Trail into South Portland has been a longtime goal for town and Eastern Trail officials. Doing so has not been an easy task.
“It’s a complicated area to spread a trail through, but it is a high priority for the town and a very high priority for the region,” Bacon said.
Bob Bowker, vice president of the Eastern Trail Alliance, said the trail has come a long way since it was first envisioned 15 years ago as a place for people to walk, bike and run while enjoying nature.
Since then the trail has been expanded, including a section between Biddeford and Kennebunk in 2010 and Saco and Old Orchard Beach in 2011.
The Forecaster, Thursday, November 14, 2013 at 9:20 am
SCARBOROUGH — Steps to improve highway transportation and off-road recreation were taken last week by town officials, but the end results could be years away.
On Nov. 6, councilors unanimously endorsed a preliminary report justifying a new Maine Turnpike exit near mile 40, at the Saco-Scarborough boundary.
Two days before that, Town Planner Dan Bacon hosted a public meeting outlining a proposed connection for the Eastern Trail, from the east bank of the Nonesuch River to the South Portland Greenbelt at the Wainwright Athletic Fields.
[Note: Details about the discussion of the turnpike study are not shown here – read the full online story for these details.]
Eastern Trail
The DOT also funded the $150,000 study on how to complete about a mile of the Eastern Trail, a project that would require at least two bridges and carry a preliminary estimated cost of $3 million to $3.5 million.
“It is incredibly complex … but a very high priority for the town and the region,” Bacon said.
The Eastern Trail extends from Kittery to Bug Light Park in South Portland, with few gaps. One large gap exists at the Saco River between Saco and Biddeford.The trail extends to the Nonesuch River in Scarborough, but the official marked route to South Portland follows Black Point Road to Highland Avenue to Gary L. Maietta Parkway.
Dan Cote, a project engineer with the Westbrook office of HNTB Corp., said the trail extension from the river would mostly use a Central Maine Power Co. right of way, but would require a 22.5-foot-tall bridge over the Pan Am Railways tracks.
Bacon estimated the bridge could cost $750,000.
The trail is largely built along old Eastern Railroad rail beds. Granite supports for the old bridge over the Nonesuch River are sturdy enough to hold a new prefabricated bridge that Cote said might look like the one crossing Scarborough Marsh.
“It is by far the most challenging trail section we have been engaged with,” Cote said of the last connection in Scarborough.
Once across Pleasant Hill Road, the proposed trail route would skirt the east side of Prout’s Pond on land owned by the Maine Turnpike Authority.
Bacon said the work depends on funding.
“It could be one year, it could be two or three, given the lack of transportation funding there is right now,” he said.
SCARBOROUGH – A scenic route connecting the Piscataqua River and Casco Bay is one step closer to being completed.
Last week Scarborough Town Planner Dan Bacon and representatives from the Eastern Trail Alliance unveiled a preliminary plan to extend the Eastern Trail in Scarborough to the Wainwright Recreation Complex, the beginning of South Portland’s Greenbelt Walkway.
The Greenbelt Walkway is a 5.7-mile trail that runs from the Scarborough/South Portland town line to Portland Breakwater Lighthouse in Bug Light Park. The Eastern Trail starts near Route 103 in Kittery and ends at the Nonesuch River in Scarborough.
The proposed 1-mile trail would rely heavily on Central Maine Power corridors to extend toward Pleasant Hill Road, across the Pan-Am railroad line and past the pond behind Pond Cove drive before crossing into South Portland and ending at the Wainwright complex.
Bacon said extending the Eastern Trail into South Portland has been a longtime goal for town and Eastern Trail officials. Doing so has not been an easy task.
“It’s a complicated area to spread a trail through, but it is a high priority for the town and a very high priority for the region,” Bacon said.
Bob Bowker, vice president of the Eastern Trail Alliance, said the trail has come a long way since it was first envisioned 15 years ago as a place for people to walk, bike and run while enjoying nature. Since then the trail has been expanded, including a section between Biddeford and Kennebunk in 2010 and Saco and Old Orchard Beach in 2011.
“In 15 years there has been a lot accomplished with the Eastern Trail,” Bowker said. “Despite the fact we have over 20 miles of trails available, these projects left some gaps.”