Andover Town Manager Requests $7.4 million to recap Landfill

According to the Andover Townsman, the Andover Town Manager recommended that residents approve $7.4 million to re-cap 25.8 acres of the former Ledge Road landfill. The money also will be used to acquire land around the site that might also need to be closed off. According to the article, the $7.4 million in general fund borrowing is by far the largest request in the town's capital improvement plan for fiscal year 2009. At $1.5 million, a request for school building roof replacement is the only other project over $1 million.

Read the entire Andover Townsman article.

States Contributes $400k to Haverhill to Buy Unused Railroad Land in Bradford

The Eagle Tribune reported that the State is pitching in with $400,000 to help Haverhill purchase an abandoned railroad bed on the Bradford side of the Merrimack River. The 1.1-mile railroad stretch runs from the Comeau Bridge at the western end of downtown to the Haverhill Paperboard company just east of the Basiliere Bridge. The city hopes to replace the dilapidated railroad bed with a recreational trail and eventually connect it to boardwalks and pathways on the downtown side of the river. The 2.5-mile loop would be connected on both ends of the downtown at the Basiliere and Comeau bridges, forming a continuous loop.

According to the Eagle Tribune article, Haverhill is negotiating to buy the unused railroad land and is counting on the rail trail and several other projects, including a boardwalk along Washington Street, to revitalize downtown and take advantage of the river as a tourist attraction. The idea is that the proposed pathway will increase foot traffic in the business district, giving a boost to shops and restaurants and creating a lively atmosphere.

Read the entire Eagle Tribune article.

28-mile Bike Trail to Run From Boxford Through Newburyport

According to the Georgetown Record, MassHighway is moving forward on a proposed 28-mile bike trail set to run through Georgetown, agreeing to perform and fund 25% design work on the Border to Boston Trail. The trail will run on top of the historic and abandoned Maine to Boston railway, running from Salisbury to the Danvers/Peabody border. The proposed trail is set to run through Boxford, Danvers, Georgetown, Newbury, Newburyport, Salisbury, Topsfield and Wenham.

The trail has been earmarked for $800,000 of federal safety funding to do the design work, secured by U.S. Rep. John Tierney in 2005. The final cost to complete the 25% design work is expended to exceed nearly $1 million, but MassHighway hopes to be able to provide the balance of funds needed for the project. MassHighway has begun the process of hiring a qualified consultant for the design, which is expected to be complete by the summer of 2009.

Read the entire Georgetown Record article.

Construction Begins on Future Salem Registry of Deeds

The Salem Gazette reported that construction has begun on the new (Salem) South Essex Registry of Deeds. After more than a century at 36 Federal Street, the Registry of Deeds will be moving for approximately five years to the Shetland Park complex at 27 Congress Street, home of the old Sears building.

The Registry is moving to make way for the city’s new courthouse complex, the J. Michael Ruane Judicial Center, in the Federal Street area. Tentative plans for a future home are to swap places with the current Salem District Court building, which will be vacated when the courthouse project is finished, in 2011 according to the Salem Gazette article.

The Shetland Park Registry promise to offer ample parking, including an adjacent parking garage with more than 100 free spaces, a shuttle bus which will operate every 30 minutes on weekdays from downtown, and climate control, which should help preserve some of the oldest deeds in the country – dating as far back as 1639.

Read the entire Salem Gazette article.

Beverly Public Hearing for Open Space Protection

According to the Beverly Citizen, the Beverly Planning Board and City Council is holding a joint public hearing tonight, March 3, 2008, at7:15pm to consider changes to the Open Space and Residential Design ordinance.

Among the proposed changes are a recommendation for the 100-foot buffer around each property to be eliminated or reduced to 25 feet, and also to change the threshold for land required to be developed using the ordinance.

Read the entire Beverly Citizen article.