We have an alternative that might bring the Cambridge Water department to the table.
We could plan to create bike lanes by widening Trapello using our easements on both sides of Trapello. Or, I wonder if the Cambridge water department might be more amenable to granting an easement for a more generous roadside path if we were to attempt to widen Trapello to create a bike lane along Trapello using our easements between the lot line and the road. We could potentially trade the right to not use the easement on the rt 2 or north side of Trapello in exchange for a wider sidewalk setback from the road using the existing south side easement plus a little bit of their land alongTrapello. My hope is that we could create a safer path for pedestrians and bicycles and reduce the potential pavement directly feeding their reservoir. On Thu, Sep 19, 2024 at 3:46 PM Bob Kupperstein <[email protected]> wrote: > I wonder if the Cambridge water department might be more receptive if the > proposal was for an 'unpaved' path? > > -Bob > > On Thursday, September 19, 2024, Sara Mattes <[email protected]> wrote: > >> Agree with all your points, but this is not simply the City of Cambridge, >> it is the city Water Department, and part of the Cambridge Watershed. >> So, there is no such thing as the ability to do a taking/eminent domain. >> In addition, the town has repeatedly declined to do so on private >> property throughout town. >> >> Back in the early 2000s, and the early days of the RTC, we did a >> town-wide roadway plan for roadway improvements. >> Then, we were in regular dialog with Cambridge. >> They were helpful in that they agreed to clear out understory brush on >> the corner so as to improve sightline at the stop sign on the south side of >> Old County…but that was about it. >> Ken Bassett was the liaison from the RTC to Cambridge. >> >> But that was then….. >> >> >> >> On Sep 19, 2024, at 1:29 PM, Tim Mangini <[email protected]> wrote: >> >> Thank you for that background, Bob. Very helpful. A couple points in >> response. >> >> >> - When was the last time Lincoln reached out to the City of Cambridge? >> - My naivete I am sure, but does the town not have some sort of >> eminent domain rights to put in a sidewalk? >> - I think it is entirely possible that individuals from Old County >> Road and Trapelo Road did not attend a meeting on this subject, however I >> and other concerned neighbors in the area weighed in on the BPAC master >> plan as it was being created via what I remember as being an on-line >> process. >> - Also, this seems to me to be much more than a neighborhood issue >> and more of a safety issue. Much like a crosswalk at Route 2, which you >> wouldn’t expect to be primarily a neighborhood driven issue. >> - That particular stretch of Trapelo road is traversed by bike and on >> foot by a huge number of residents and non-residents who do not live >> immediately nearby. >> - It is primarily a safety issue. >> - It is heavily trafficked >> - There can be no safe place to walk or ride a bike for 2-3 months >> of the year due to snow banks meaning they are sharing the roadway with >> fast-moving traffic. >> - In the winter the morning sun comes directly into the Boston >> bound driver’s eyes >> >> >> tim >> ----- >> >> >> *From: *Bob Wolf <[email protected]> >> *Date: *Wednesday, September 18, 2024 at 3:06 PM >> *To: *Collette Sizer <[email protected]> >> *Cc: *Tim Mangini <[email protected]>, Listserv Listserv < >> [email protected]> >> *Subject: *Re: [LincolnTalk] Roadway plan >> Tim, Collette >> To clarify and confirm a few points. >> >> - There have been multiple efforts over the years to extend the >> Trapelo roadside path to Old County Road. Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory >> Committee recognized the points you have made early, and an extension of >> the path was included in its master plan. Any extension, however, would >> cross land owned by Cambridge as reservoir buffer and require their >> agreement and easement, things they’ve been unwilling to grant. The 5 >> year >> plan is a statement of what the town believes *we are able to address*, >> and the roadside path extension is not possible at this time. The plan >> will >> be reviewed and extended annually, however. We can hope circumstances >> change and the extension can be added in the future. >> - BPAC did not hear from the Old County Road neighborhood during our >> work on the master plan, but we intend it to be a “living document” and to >> be edited in light of new findings. We would be happy to hear from Old >> County Road neighbors during the public comment period at one of our >> meetings. Our next one is scheduled for the evening of Thursday 9/26. >> Agenda will likely be out Tuesday. Future meetings will be posted in the >> town calendar. >> >> >> I wish the news on the Trapelo roadside path extension were better. >> >> Take care, >> >> Bob Wolf >> BPAC member >> >> >> >> >> -- >> The LincolnTalk mailing list. >> To post, send mail to [email protected]. >> Browse the archives at >> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/private/lincoln/. >> Change your subscription settings at >> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/lincoln. >> >> >> -- > The LincolnTalk mailing list. > To post, send mail to [email protected]. > Browse the archives at https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/private/lincoln/ > . > Change your subscription settings at > https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/lincoln. > >
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