7/6/99

Mike Tyrrell, core member of SAND and a proponent of the Harbortrail project which proposes contiguous bicyle access along the Fort Point Channel and waterfront, reports the following news regarding this important project.


 
Brad Swing, an attorney with the City's Environmental Services Cabinet and
Naomi Fraenkel, project planner with the B.R.A. have announced the release
of a long awaited Federal Highway (ISTEA) Grant of $50,000.00 for the
purpose of preparing studies of the trail's future alignment.
 
Harbortrail is a concept for extending the existing Melnea Cass Boulevard
Bikeway through the South End (along Bio-square/Boston Medical Center and
the new Mass. Avenue Connector and onward to the Fort Point Channel
corridor, Fan Pier Park and Harbor Island Ferries.
 
The coalition meets monthly and is diversely composed of representatives
from abutting neighborhoods and institutions including Boston University,
BioSquare, the MWRA and the Pine Street Inn. Harbortrail is a pilot project
of the Campaign for the Water's Edge; an open space access "drive" sponsored
by Save the Harbor Save the Bay. The Campaign's intent is to connect
Boston's inner-city communities with the open spaces and recreational edges
of Boston Harbor and Massachusetts Bay. The campaign's honorary Chairman is
William O. Taylor Sr., former publisher of the Boston Globe.
 
Next steps include release of a request for proposals (by the City) and the
eventual hiring of traffic planning and landscape-architectural consultants.
We expect to review safety issues in tandem with "visioning" the pedestrian
bikeway. We are continuing to raise funds for signage, striping, enhanced
traffic signals and major public art components.
 
One goal of Harbortrail is to better link (at least psychologically) two
distinct and growing arts communities... namely the Fort Point and Harrison
Ave. "SOWA" districts. Please stay tuned..... the coalition hopes
to fully engage SAND and other communities as a process emerges.


Your comments as a visitor to the SAND website would be appreciated and forwarded for discussion.

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