The Town of Springfield has been awarded grant money for a study to look into extending the Toonerville bike and pedestrian trail all the way to North Springfield.
Town Manager Bob Forguites reported this week that the town's application was accepted by the state Department of Transportation. The grant amounts to $30,000.
The current paved bike path begins near the I-91 Springfield exit and follows where the old Springfield Terminal Railway tracks once were until ending near the east end of the former Jones & Lamson building complex at which point bikers merge with traffic onto Clinton Street. It gets its name from the old trolley system between Charlestown and downtown Springfield which was nicknamed Toonerville Trolley after a popular comic strip of the early 1900's. It is also sometimes referred to as BART (Bicycle and Recreation Trail), reminding users of a more recent cartoon popular with Springfielders.
Kudos to the activists with the Springfield Engagement Group who picked up the ball and ran with this! Especial thanks to Lizzie Craig and Laura Cody-McNaughton for their efforts in getting the grant written and applied for!
ReplyDeleteInto North Springfield?????
ReplyDeleteReally?
Who in their right mind would want to ride into 'Biomass Toxic Town'?
It is a shame they built the largest tourist attraction in the state of Vermont 2 miles from a biomass plant. No one visits Church St in Burlington because of the Mcneil Biomass Plant.
Deletelol springfields burlington. nice try.
DeleteSpringfield High School runs on bio mass fuel, not a big deal
DeleteFree money once again. Ever wonder who pays? The free beers are coming tomorrow......
ReplyDeleteSo you are saying Springfield should just sit by and watch other towns/projects get this funding? Typical Springfield, just bitch and complain instead of doing something.
DeleteNo, I think they are saying we should get studies, surveys, and research done on things that are more important.
DeleteThey are also pointing out that 0$ will go to anybody outside of the current circle of municipal miss-managment
So, the money is just for a study?
ReplyDeleteNow guess who gets that money now to do the study.....Springfield.....where free money grows on trees and a select few get to pick those bills and pocket the money.
DeleteI'll give $30,000.00 to EVERY SINGLE PERSON that ever walked from point to point as described.
DeleteHere we go...
ReplyDeleteIf we give 1$ to every person that has walked this proposed travel path, out of the $30,000.00 how much money will be left over for "socialist administrative fees"
and then who will build the path, who will pay for it, and with who's money>>>
The answer is $30,000.00 left over becasue know one has ever walked that path.
DeleteThis is a UN AGENDA 21 DERIVATIVE
ReplyDeleteI'll bet the report somehow has the path walk next to all of the Non Profit on the Dole projects and then sights every other property as in the way and needing a face lift or to be removed.
stupid does as from Springfield does.
anybody need a 4 color copy of the "parking survey?"
How about $30,000.00 to clean the listed and known toxic waste that is in the river next to the current bike path?
ReplyDeleteyeah right, I dare you to go swimming behind the Edgar May Center. Go use the tire swing behind the S.R.D.C. building. Ah yes but the lawn looks lovely
DeleteWelcome to Springfield.
thats gonna take millions..........
Delete30 thousand for a bike path study in a town that so financially depressed.... how funny.
ReplyDeleteno one in town even rides a bike. There is no bike store.
DeleteYou have to be nuts to ride a bike in Springfield. There is one flat road; everything else is hills, and you will die in the attempt. Simply biking from the plaza to the hospital will land you in the ER with a heart attack.
DeleteI had to drive to Claremont to buy running shoes.
DeleteI have to drive to claremont or chester to get decent pizza, what is your point?
DeleteOther things you have to drive for if you live in Springfield:
Delete-A Decent Bar.
-To purchase a TV.
-To purchase skiis.
-To ski.
-To purhase a computer.
Things you dont have to drive for if you live in Springfield:
-A darn good bike/running path.
-Running shoes. We have a sporting goods store called Real Sports on Clinton Street.
There is a computer store in Springfield.
DeleteYet, bikes are like the number one stolen item around town. My family and I actually do enjoy the bike path. We use it for in-line skating, biking, walking, jogging, running, and it's nice because it provides an area away from the road to walk with kids and also allows them a place to learn to skate and ride safely. I enjoy a good three mile run now and then and this path as well as the Hartness Trail are convienent in town options for outdoor exercise. So, I would enjoy the extension. However, I do agree with those who are concerned that there are other greater priorities that could use these funds.
ReplyDeleteIf you think this town is so bad. Why are you still living here? I-91 will thake you out of Springfield and hopefully out of this state. Good bye and good ridence.
ReplyDeletewhy don't you get a survey to prove that to me.
DeleteThen maybe I'll consider applying for a grant to get there.
I personaly enjoy living with all of you fools. I fit right in.
we are here to save the town. Don't like what we have to say, guess what comes next....
Deletewow we should leave because we dont agree. typical
DeleteSimply amazing that people are criticizing this grant which is from a specialized fund that would go to other communities for other reasons. Even the match had already been donated and was being held idle by the Town. What is wrong with you people?
ReplyDeletePerhaps they see this as another use of tax payer monies that could be better used. Let's face it. This is just another "project" for the town elitists. Why blow $30,000 on a project study when the money could be used for far better things? Trying to build a bike trail while the town is virtually bankrupting its citizens is idiotic. Guess how many dollars would be required to actually build a trail? Millions! As a known shill for the elites and their boondoggles I would expect you to criticize anyone that dares to question their hunger games and to try to embarrass anyone that has the brains and the fortitude to speak out against these continuing abuses.
DeleteAethelred, shake your head in dismay. The Republicans have been so thoroughly successful in framing taxes and government spending in behalf of health, education and the welfare of the citizenry that you will always have the anonymice objecting. They don't object, however, when it comes to fattening the bank accounts of contractors in the Military-Industrial Complex or the fossil fuels industry.
DeleteThey cannot grasp how thoroughly screwed they have been and currently are by people who have become so incedibly wealthy everybody thinks they are not only smart but also altruistically inclined. They have fallen for the "Marriage Penalty" tax credit, giving away money which could have provided $1.5 million to each of Springfield's schools. It was rigged so that a couple earning four times the average Vermont couples income gets back 30 times more money. What does it take to make people realize they are being cut off from the good life their parents enjoyed in America?
what about your democrats. nafta china favored trade nation. all done by clinton. that helped us didnt it. your generation screwed us. clinton and bush!
DeleteActually NAFTA has to do with Mexico and Canada since it stands for the North American Free Trade Agreement. Both Republicans and Democrats have stood for free trade agreements, but the Republicans tend to favor them more than Democrats. The only one in the debates that stood against NAFTA was Ross Perot and I have to agree with him on that call.
DeleteI am going to be NAKED out front of The Bank Block at 11:00 p.m. if any body wants to see a good show!!!!!
ReplyDeleteAnother town selectman checks in......
DeleteThank you all for a wonderfull showing. We will have a flash mob again, sungay At Noon. Come after church, in your best dress. This time we are going to go to the Bridge overlooking The Black River. And Yes, I will again be NAKED !!
DeleteA rose is a rose so they say....
ReplyDeleteWe are all pettals of the rose.
With the rose closed we are all close together.
When the rose is open we are all apart.
It doesn't matter who you are, you smell lovely and will still prick the A$$H@l+ that cuts you.
This is nothing but a money grab. If the yet as publically, unnamed person financially benefiting from this ruse proceeds, I will publically out them here. Make no mistake. This is YOUR money!
ReplyDeleteShortly after work was initiated on the current bike path, an identical study was done. Feasibility of extending the trail to N. Spfld was firmly negated. From the Wreck Ctr. to the Plaza it's self evident. From there North, it would require a right of way across several private and commercial properties. None were receptive to consideration.
money ???
Deleteor
money AND our children's indebtedness / lives / TIME
give the money away in a Downtown Lottery
Wrong, this study is from Park Street towards North Springfield. The first trail was an amazing success and is used by many Springfielders, get over it -- this is a good thing.
DeleteCongratulations to all who made this grant happen. It's a step in the right direction for Springfield. Bravo! We will ALL benefit from the extended bike path!
ReplyDeleteYes thank you to the people who are trying to do something positive in Springfield for picking up the dropped ball and running with it!
DeleteWhat a load of crap. This trail extension is promoted by the town's elites while the rest of the town is burning. Try taking care of all of the town's citizens first before encouraging esoteric plans that will line the pockets of the select few once gain while doing little to improve the lives of the majority of the town's residents. Try fixing the broken school system first instead of blaming its failure on demographics over and over again.
DeleteThe funding source tapped was not available for school finance. All of the economic strata in Springfield use the existing trail and if anything the lower economic groups will use the extension. This is a chance to enhance the Town of Springfield including North Springfield without taking funds from other projects. Get real and get a life.
Delete