NORTHAMPTON — The city has secured $157,000 in state funding through the MassTrails grant program to design and engineer a universally accessible connection to the Norwottuck portion of the Mass Central Rail Trail at Northern Avenue, opening access for hundreds in surrounding neighborhoods and those with hindered mobility.
The grant will be matched by $45,000 in local Community Preservation Act funding, possibly reducing the financial burden placed on the city’s CPA funds after the City Council recently approved $202,000 in CPA funding for the project. That full allocation will not longer be necessary thanks to the state grant.
Carolyn Misch, director of the Office of Planning and Sustainability, said the city posted a community survey to its website earlier this year asking residents where they wished to see increased bike access. More than 20% of respondents voiced an interest in access at the Norwottuck portion of the trail.
The Norwottock Rail Trail is an 8.5-mile path linking Northampton, Hadley and Amherst along the former Boston & Main Railroad right-of-way.
Misch remarked that in the future, the city aims to seek grant funding for other bicycle access points along the rail trail identified in the survey.
“We’re really excited about it, it’s been a little bit of a complicated nut to crack that we’ve been thinking about for 15-plus years, and we know that it’s been a location where people access the trail, but it’s only for people who have the ability to ride or walk on steep terrain and go up and down across the wetland, so we’re excited to be able to create a formal access for everybody,” Misch said.
Although city staff is working toward a deadline to complete the project’s design by June 27, 2027, Misch said it is still unknown when the city can begin construction on the project. The city should have a more complete cost estimate for construction this time next year.
Mayor Gina-Louise Sciarra, in a written statement, explained that the grant will help the city move closer to its goal to connect neighborhoods with multiuse paths and wooded trails that serve people of all ages and abilities.
“Northampton’s trail network is one of our community’s greatest assets, and everyone should be able to enjoy it,” Sciarra said. “This grant helps us remove a barrier that has existed for years while bringing us one step closer to a safe, accessible connection for the surrounding neighborhood.”
