Weston Rail Trail Committee Advances Screening Scoring System for Residential Abutters

WESTON — March 26, 2018 — Weston's Rail Trail Advisory Committee detailed a scoring matrix to guide planting and fencing decisions along the proposed rail trail corridor at its March 26 meeting. Landscape architect Allison Richardson of Brown, Richardson & Rowe presented a 21-criterion evaluation framework that will be applied to each of the roughly 20 to 30 residential abutting properties between Gun Club Lane and the solar panel array, rating factors such as distance from the trail, backyard use intensity, and feasibility of plantings constrained by wetlands, deer pressure, and a 15-foot height limit imposed by Eversource power lines. The committee is seeking $437,000 under Article 22 at the upcoming town warrant for two trailheads, screening, and fencing, and separately is pursuing a DCR partnership matching grant on $78,000 in Community Preservation Committee planting funds, with the concept application due April 13. Richardson noted that Weston's approach is rare — on a 19-mile Cape Cod Rail Trail redesign, only five properties received any screening — calling the town's methodology "equitable" and "really comprehensive." Trail construction was confirmed to begin the following morning, with the Conant Road underpass segment not expected until summer 2019 at the earliest.