The Williamsburg Mill River Greenway Committee invites town residents to a community forum April 9 to share information on the creation of a multipurpose pathway along the Mill River corridor, between the village centers of Haydenville and Williamsburg.
Committee member Eric Bloomquist said the project is at an exciting point and he hopes for a good turnout.
“We’ve had some preliminary engineering studies done, and we have narrowed down the different concepts for the main Haydenville to Williamsburg route to a few possibilities,” Bloomquist said. “The community forum will be a great opportunity for town residents to learn more about these possibilities.”
The Williamsburg Select Board created the Greenway Committee in June 2012 to study the possibility of a multipurpose pathway between Haydenville and Williamsburg.
The committee presented its findings to the Select Board in June 2013, and since then the group has been laying the groundwork for the project.
The greenway will be designed to provide a safe route to school for Haydenville and Williamsburg students, and community access to recreational opportunities and historical sites.
Bloomquist said that the forum will be a good opportunity to hear from residents.
“Adding that feedback to the knowledge we’ve gathered so far, we intend to narrow our focus to two concepts,” Bloomquist said. “The next stages will be to contract more detailed engineering studies, followed by detailed design work.
People attending the forum will also learn about plans to improve traffic safety on South Main Street and to connect with the end of the Norwottuck Rail Trail that is at Haydenville’s border with Leeds.
The forum will start at 2 p.m. in the Town Offices at 141 Main St. in Haydenville.
For more information about the Williamsburg Mill River Greenway Committee visit the town website at burgy.org/Pages/williamsburgma_BComm/greenway_comm
Co-founder of the American Tibetan Medical Association, Dr. Phuntsog Wangmo will speak about “Tibetan Medicine: Theory and Practice” at the Chesterfield Community Center at 2 p.m. April 10.
Wangmo received her degree from Lhasa University School of Traditional Medicine and spent many years working as a doctor in Eastern Tibet. She is currently in residence at the Shang Shung Institute of America in Conway, where she teaches a three-year course of Tibetan medical practice.
Wangmo was appointed the international director of the School of Tibetan Medicine in 2012.
Her presentation will be followed by a question-and-answer period.
Hosted by the Chesterfield Council on Aging, the event is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.
The R.H. Conwell School preschool and kindergarten in Worthington will hold an open house from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. April 9.
Parents, guardians and friends are invited to come meet the teachers, see the classrooms and check out the preschool’s language and nature-based programs.
Visitors are encouraged to bring their boots and explore the play area, or take a walk in the woods. Games, books and craft items will be available to enjoy.
This is an opportunity for incoming kindergarteners and their families to get an idea of what a typical day is like.
And there will be light refreshments.
Registration forms will be available to fill out or take home. Anyone unable to attend the open house may call 238-5856 to arrange a tour and apply for next year.
The R.H. Conwell School is at 147 Huntington Road.
Rabies clinics for cats and dogs will be held from 8:30 until 10 a.m. Saturday at the Chesterfield fire station, and from 10:30 a.m. until noon at the Goshen fire station.
The fee is $25 and the veterinarian donates proceeds to the fire departments. Dog licenses also will be available.
Ideas for this column on life in the Hilltowns can be sent to Fran Ryan at Fryan.gazette@gmail.com.