Group’s goal is to extend trail south from Kennebunk to Kittery
The Kennebunk Post – By Alex Acquisto,Staff Writer
The Eastern Trail Alliance and Southern Eastern Trail Alliance have begun to set new plans for expanding into motion.
Optimally, the off-road trail will continue from South Portland through Wells, North and South Berwick and Eliot, all the way down to Kittery. The alliance held an informational meeting Tuesday, March 26 in North Berwick to discuss expansion plans and feel out any opposition.
Formally designed in 1998 to follow the abandoned Eastern Railway, the Eastern Trail was constructed for runners, hikers, bikers and other general outdoor enthusiasts.
Nearly every year since the millennium, new paths have been forged between South Portland and Kennebunk.
“There was some reluctance in southern Maine about the trail — there was skepticism whether the trail would ever get built over the Kennebunk turnpike,” said Deborah Erickson Irons, director of Choose to Be Healthy Coalition and Eastern Trail Alliance trustee.
“People wondered, ‘Will we ever get the benefits of the trail down here?’ To the town’s credit, they have been patient and now they see that the trail is ready in Kennebunk. We’re over the hurdle of putting it over the turnpike,” she said.
“We’re seeking funding to extend the offroad trail from where it is in Kennebunk now, farther south,” said Erickson-Irons. “We wanted to start generating interest in the south, so we formed a small committee to focus on North Berwick and South Berwick.”
Read the full article online here.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT:Deborah Erickson-Irons, ETA
Board Member, 207-351-2659; email.
Presentation About the Eastern Trail Scheduled in North Berwick
March 14, 2013
An informational presentation, “The Eastern Trail: A Trail and a Vision” will be held on Tuesday, March 26, 2013, 7 PM, at the North Berwick Community Center, 264 Lebanon Road, North Berwick. Anyone interested in learning about the Eastern Trail, is invited to attend.
Have you driven I-95 through Kennebunk and seen the beautiful span over the highway that is part of the Eastern Trail? The off-road Eastern Trail currently ends at the Kennebunk Elementary school, but the vision of trail enthusiasts in Southern Maine, is for the off-road trail to continue through Wells, North Berwick, South Berwick, Eliot, and Kittery. The Eastern Trail Alliance is the focused effort to vision, build, promote and use the trail. The Alliance includes many supporters from throughout Southern Maine, hikers, bikers, X-country skiers, birders, and other outdoor enthusiasts, dedicated to creating, enjoying and maintaining the Eastern Trail.
Panel presenters on March 26 will share the history of building the off-road Eastern Trail, future plans for the trail, reasons to support the trail, and answer your questions regarding the project. Presenters will include Eastern Trail Management District President and Arundel Town Planner, Tad Redway; Eastern Trail Alliance and Saco City Planner, President Bob Hamblen; and Choose To Be Healthy Coalition Director, Deborah Erickson-Irons. Coffee, juice and small desserts will be served.
The Eastern Trail is a 65 mile section of the East Coast Greenway, a transportation-recreation greenway connecting South Portland to Kittery. The scenic on-road trail mostly follows quiet country roads. Bike riders, walkers, and hikers can enjoy beautiful outdoor experiences from South Portland’s Bug Light Park on Casco Bay (near Portland) to Kittery’s Piscataqua River. In addition to the on-road trail, the Eastern Trail has the growing length of off-road sections. For more information about the trail and about the meeting, please go to www.easterntrail.org, call the Eastern Trail Alliance office at 207-284-9260, or call Deborah Erickson-Irons at 207-351-2659.
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
NORTH BERWICK, Maine — An informational presentation, “The Eastern Trail: A Trail and a Vision” will be held at 7 pm on Tuesday, March 26 at the North Berwick Community Center, 264 Lebanon Road in North Berwick. Anyone interested in learning about the Eastern Trail is invited to attend.
Have you driven I-95 through Kennebunk and seen the beautiful span over the highway that is part of the Eastern Trail? The off-road Eastern Trail currently ends at the Kennebunk Elementary school, but the vision of trail enthusiasts in southern Maine is for the off-road trail to continue through Wells, North Berwick, South Berwick, Eliot, and Kittery.
The Eastern Trail Alliance is the focused effort to vision, build, promote and use the trail. The Alliance includes many supporters from throughout southern Maine, hikers, bikers, X-country skiers, birders, and other outdoor enthusiasts dedicated to creating, enjoying and maintaining the Eastern Trail.
Panel presenters on March 26 will share the history of building the off-road Eastern Trail, future plans for the trail, reasons to support the trail, and answer your questions regarding the project. Presenters will include Eastern Trail Management District President and Arundel Town Planner Tad Redway; Eastern Trail Alliance President and Saco City Planner Bob Hamblen; and Choose To Be Healthy Coalition Director Deborah Erickson-Irons. Coffee, juice and small desserts will be served.
— About the Eastern Trail —
The Eastern Trail is a 65 mile section of the East Coast Greenway, a transportation-recreation greenway connecting South Portland to Kittery. The scenic on-road trail mostly follows quiet country roads. Bike riders, walkers, and hikers can enjoy outdoor experiences from South Portland’s Bug Light Park on Casco Bay (near Portland) to Kittery’s Piscataqua River. In addition to the on-road trail, the Eastern Trail has the growing length of off-road sections.
For more information about the trail and about the meeting, please go to www.easterntrail.org, call The Eastern Trail Alliance office at 207-284-9260, or call Deborah Erickson-Irons at 207-351-2659.
EASTERN TRAIL INFORMATIONAL MEETING
Included a slide show covering Vision, Successes, and Challenges
And an Eastern Trail Experts Panel:
Eastern Trail Founder, President Emeritus John Andrews
Eastern Trail Alliance President Bob Hamblen, Saco Planner
Eastern Trail Management District President Tad Redway, Arundel Planner
Why was this meeting held in North Berwick, a town that has not supported the ET for ten years? Last year, Kennebunk and Wells asked Maine DOT to fund a final design, ready-to-bid, package for the ET from the end of the off-road section in Kennebunk all the way south as far as their towns allow. That would have meant ending at Perry Oliver Road in Wells. MDOT’s informal response has been that the ET must provide connectivity between major locations. In other words, if the design and construction does not extend all the way to Pratt-Whitney in North Berwick, the project is not fundable.
Some possible outcomes from the meeting:
Click here to read a news article about this meeting (3/19, Foster’s Online). Click here to read another news article about this meeting (Kennebunk Post). Click here to view a video of the meeting.
Click here to view a document that described route options through North Berwick, and includes color maps(this is a large pdf file, it may take some time to download).
The Eastern Trail Management District (ETMD) is a group of representatives from each Eastern Trail town that manages the construction and upkeep of the trail. Below is ETMD’s Spring 2013 newsletter:
Says recreational path helps bring tourists to region
By Molly McPherson news@seacoastonline.com
February 07, 2013 2:00 AM
SOUTH BERWICK, Maine — The Eastern Trail Alliance is hoping to build new off-road trails to replace the current on-road sections of the trail located in town.
Members of the group recently met with the Town Council to discuss the trail improvements. Carole Brush, executive director of the alliance, thanked the town for its continued support of the alliance’s efforts and offered assistance in seeking money to help pay for the design and construction of the new trails.
“South Berwick had been particularly loyal in looking for ways to get the trail funded and built,” Brush said.
The 65-mile Eastern Trail, which is the southern Maine section of the East Coast Greenway trail, connects South Portland to Kittery. However, none of the 22 miles of off-road trails are in southern York County.
“Maine needs new trails,” said Anita Rosencrantz, South Berwick’s representative on the Eastern Trail Management District, a group of volunteers representing towns throughout Maine that abut the trail.
Read the entire article online here
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