ANDOVER — Yet another Special Town Meeting may be on the horizon.
The required number of signatures have been verified for a resident-petitioned Special Town Meeting to be called, according to the Town Clerk Austin Simko.
The intent of the articles on the meeting’s warrant would be to block the creation of a paved path on the Haggetts Pond trail.
The town is planning on paving a roughly 1.6 mile stretch of trail, which lies adjacent to Haggetts Pond. The goal, according to the town, is to create an accessible path that would allow people from all walks of life to experience nature.
The petition was submitted on Jan. 30.
The paving project has not been well received by the community. Residents have been in an uproar about the potential environmental and ecological results of paving the trail.
Don Schroeder, a petitioner calling for the meeting, said he was able to gather more than 390 signatures.
“It wasn’t as difficult as one might think,” he added.
Most recently, the project has been before the Conservation Commission whose role it is to make sure projects conform to wetland laws.
The project would be completed using both American Rescue Plan Funds and a state grant.
One petitioner of the Special Town Meeting said the town has been rushing the paving project.
“It seems like the town has not done their homework,” Jenicka Engler said.
Engler said she is chiefly concerned about potential contamination created from disturbing the old rail bed, a danger she said the state recognizes. But Director of Facilitates Janet Nicosia said the plans don’t call for much digging at the site.
“All we are going to do is take the organic top off,” she said.
Nicosia said the hard-packed soil there will be used to build the trail up.
This is also of concern due to the trail’s close proximity to Haggetts Pond which also serves as the town’s water supply.
Despite concern from residents, town officials say the use of the asphalt near the water is safe. Officials also emphasize the importance of asphalt in making a project accessible. Nicosia said it is not just making a trail that meets the qualifications on Day One, but every day. Asphalt is helpful in making sure the project is consistently accessible, she said.
Engler said more information should be gathered regarding the soil.
“It’s too risky, we don’t have enough information,” she said.
Engler said there are also better options and highlights an area near Pomps Pond as an ideal location.
She is also concerned about microplastics, which she said would increase with more traffic on the trail.
She said that it is the “right project in the wrong location.”
There is also concern from many about the number of trees that may have to come down as a result of the project. Nicosia said they have not determined the number of trees that will need to be taken down for the project.
The Select Board will take up the petition on Monday, Feb. 12, according to an agenda for that meeting.
Resident-petitioned articles often have no legal weight behind them due to the limits of the Town Meeting’s power. It is unclear if the submitted articles will be binding. Town Counsel Douglas Heim could not be reached by press time, but has in the past offered to help petitioners determine if an article is legal before presenting it to Town Meeting.
Nicosia said the project is also necessary to make sure the town is in compliance with ADA laws.
The most recent Special Town Meeting was held on Nov. 20.
By Teddy Tauscher | [email protected]
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