Guilford Board of Selectmen Poised to Reject Current Shoreline Greenway Trail Project

By Jack Kramer, Correspondent

GUILFORD, CT – While the Board of Selectmen won’t be deciding whether to build the 0.7 mile Shoreline Greenway Trail until Jan. 17th, the board made it clear at a recent workshop meeting it will be voting against the project – at least as currently proposed.

Selectmen, including First Selectman Joe Mazza, said they felt the proposed design just wasn’t the right one to support, and that perhaps a consulting group should be brought in to offer alternative options.

Those opposed to the project, believe the recreational aspects of the project aren’t as big a plus as the negatives of taking of what they see as historic, town property.

Those in favor of the project, however say the trail, paid by state funds, will be a recreational plus for residents who enjoy walking, biking and jogging to the town’s center and fairgrounds.

The trail would run from Route 1 on the Madison line to the Route 146 intersection in Guilford.

The trail is slated to be part of a 25-mile long stretch starting from Lighthouse Point in New Haven, and running through the shoreline towns of East Haven, Branford, Guilford, ending at Hammonasset Beach State Park in Madison.

The total cost is nearly $900,000 – with the entire cost being borne by state and federal grants.

Judith Miller, chair Shoreline Greenway Trail Board of Directors, conceded: “It is clear that the Board of Selectmen will vote against the design that the Guilford Engineering Department proposed, but I believe they still intend to try to find a way to use the funding that will meet the requirements of the federal grant.”

Miller added: Our biggest concern right now is that there was virtually no mention of safe bicycling at the workshop. One point that is being lost in the discussion is that the federal funding is from The Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration. Its purpose is to support alternative transportation.

“That is why Connecticut’s Department of Transportation was given oversight of the funding. The Shoreline Greenway Trail is not solely recreational; it is also intended to increase the use of bicycles instead of automobiles for transportation,” added Miller.