AMESBURY — Massachusetts Department of Transportation officials will be visiting Shay Elementary next month to preside over a public hearing regarding the city’s proposal to build a 10-foot wide paved shared-use path between the end of the Amesbury-Salisbury Trail Connector project at Elm Street and the east end of the Amesbury Riverwalk at Carriagetown Marketplace.
What is being billed as a design public hearing for the roughly $2.7 million project is scheduled for Jan. 6, at 7 p.m. at the Lions Mouth Road elementary school. If approved, the estimated start time is summer 2027, MassDOT says.
Once built, the connection will be approximately a half mile, and will include the construction of a shared-used trail facility for bicycle and pedestrian users and an on-road extension along Elm Street to the Salisbury Ghost Trail. and will include signs, pavement markings, and follow accessibility guidelines, according to MassDOT.
The connector is slated for $2,733,756.00 in federal and state funding through the Merrimack Valley Metropolitan Planning Organization’s 2027 Transportation Improvement Program, a common source of funding for large regional projects. Amesbury will be responsible for the maintenance of the connector post-construction, according to the city.
Amesbury Mayor Kassandra Gove called the hearing “an important milestone” in completing the final link between Amesbury’s Riverwalk Trail and the Ghost Trail.
“The proposed connector, which will run behind Carriagetown Marketplace, will expand recreational opportunities and enhance regional eco-friendly transportation options by tying into the broader trail network,” Gove said, in a statement.
Assistant Department of Public Works Director and City Engineer Lisa Demeo is serving as the city’s lead representative in coordination with MassDOT on the project, according to Gove.
The hearing’s purpose, according to MassDOT, is to provide the public with the opportunity to become fully acquainted with the proposed project. All views and comments made at the hearing will be reviewed and considered to the maximum extent possible.
The proposed project consists of constructing a 10-foot wide paved accessible shared-use path between the end of the Amesbury-Salisbury Trail Connector project at Elm Street and the east end of the Amesbury Riverwalk at Rocky Hill Road. The connection will be approximately one-third of a mile and will traverse the back side of the Carriagetown Marketplace property at 100 Macy Road. It would also include a shared-used path facility for bicycle and pedestrian users and will connect to the Ghost Trail via recently built bike lanes on Elm Street, according to MassDOT.
A secure right-of-way is necessary for this project. Acquisitions in fee and permanent or temporary easements may be required. The city is responsible for acquiring all needed rights in private or public lands. MassDOT’s policy concerning land acquisitions will be discussed at this hearing.
Written views received by MassDOT subsequent to the date of this notice and up to five days prior to the date of the hearing shall be displayed for public inspection and copying at the time and date listed above. Plans will be on display for 30 minutes before the hearing begins, with an engineer in attendance to answer questions regarding this project.
Project inquiries, written statements and other exhibits regarding the proposed undertaking may be submitted to Carrie E. Lavallee, P.E., chief engineer, via e-mail to MassDOTProjectManagement@dot.state.ma.us or via US Mail to Suite 7550, 10 Park Plaza, Boston, MA 02116, Attention: Project Management, Project File No. 611977.
In case of inclement weather, a cancellation announcement will be posted on this website.
Dave Rogers is the editor of the Daily News of Newburyport. Email him at: drogers@newburyportnews.com. Follow him on Twitter @drogers41008.