Holliston Lands Grant for Upper Charles Trail

Holliston will receive just under $50,000 in state grant funds to help build a half-mile section of the town’s portion of the Upper Charles Rail Trail.

State Rep. Carolyn Dykema and state Sen. Karen Spilka announced the Recreational Trails Grant funding late Tuesday.

The funds will come through the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation and the Massachusetts Recreational Trails Advisory Board, in conjunction with the Federal Highway Administration. The town will be required to match an additional 20 percent. 

Spilka noted that Holliston will use the grant funds to work on the section of trail that the town with $800,000 in supplemental funds she helped the town land in 2006. “And the recent grant from the Recreational Trails Project will help ensure proper maintenance of this important project,” she said.

“This is a wonderful way for the towns of Hopkinton and Holliston to move ahead and provide access to outdoor recreation for the whole community,” Dykema said. “It’s great to be able to assist our residents and communities through these grants.”

Neighboring Hopkinton also received a grant worth about $17,000.

“It is important that we invest in initiatives like the ones selected for this year’s Recreational Trails Grants,” said Spilka. “Both of these projects increase access to open space in our communities and improve the overall quality of life for our residents.”  

The funding comes as Milford wraps work on its section of the trail, becoming the first town to finish its portion. Long-range plans call for the trail to offer bikers, walkers, joggers and rollerbladers a nearly 20-mile loop path connecting Holliston, Milford, Hopkinton, Sherborn and Ashland, mainly over unused railbed.