As we hope you’ve already heard, the first piece of funding for creation of the Bourne Rail Trail is within reach…if we all vote to make it happen.
In August, the Town’s Community Preservation Committee (CPC) unanimously approved a grant application for $50,000 for the design of the first segment of the trail, running from the Railroad Bridge to the intersection of Presidents and Monument Neck Roads. This funding must now be approved by a majority vote at Bourne’s Special Town meeting, which will be held on Monday, October 1st at 7:00 p.m.
We have made tremendous progress towards making the Bourne Rail Trail a reality over the past two years. Approval of funding at the Special Town Meeting is an essential concrete next step. If approved by voters, the project will take the next steps towards development. Failure to approve the funding will delay development of the project and bring uncertainty to the Trail’s future. The Town’s failure to financially support the project will affect the availability of future state and federal funding.
The Special Town meeting is a critical juncture for the project. We respectfully request that you make it a priority to attend the meeting and cast your vote in favor of funding for the Bourne Rail Trail.
The Special Town Meeting is on Monday, October 1, at 7:00 p.m. in the Auditorium at Bourne High School. Due to Town Meeting rules, our place on the agenda will only be determined by lottery at the time of the meeting, so we cannot advise you of exactly when the vote on the CPC grant will take place. In fact, it is possible that it will not be considered until a second day of meeting, in which case we would ask you to be prepared to return the next day on October 2.
Thank you for considering this important request and for all you have done to support the Bourne Rail Trail.
-Nate Robinson, President of the Friends of the Bourne Rail Trail