Weston Rail Trail Committee Approves $16,400 Parking Study, Seeks $200,000 More

WESTON — January 8, 2018 — Weston's Rail Trail Advisory Committee approved a $16,400 Niche Engineering parking study and authorized a $200,000 Community Preservation Committee placeholder request at its January 8 meeting. Committee member Chris Sticks presented the Niche contract, which grew from an original $10,000 budget estimate after the committee added cost-estimate deliverables; the firm will examine parking options at Concord Road, Church Street, and the Townhouse Road triangle, with a March 1 conceptual design deadline. The board separately approved a placeholder CPC application for up to $200,000 for paving, accessibility improvements, and wayfinding signage ahead of a potential May town meeting vote, with staff urging the committee not to wait for the November cycle. Member Paul Penfield recommended tabling a separate $33,000 Richard Burke Associates abutter-screening proposal after the firm acknowledged it had "no experience with rail trails," saying the committee should first consult DCR and comparable trail communities before committing to a landscape architect for impact-ranking work.