MRGI Newsletter
March 2014
GET READY FOR SOME RIVERWALKS!
Dear Friends of the Mill River,
Yes, trust but verify that spring will arrive this year, and prepare yourselves for a great 2014 with the Mill River Greenway Initiative.
· We have a fantastic series of 9 riverwalks and 1 paddle this year from April to December. Check it out at the end of this newsletter.
· We are currently working on 2 new neighborhood Mill River working groups to follow the lead of the Williamsburg Mill River Greenway Committee, one in Bay State and one in Leeds. If you’re interested in becoming part of one of these groups, please let us know at info@millrivergreenway.org
· …speaking of which, please let us know the village you live in. We’d like to include that in our membership data so that we can better target our messages to particular localities.
· Williamsburg and Northampton collaborated this winter on a grant proposal to the Recreational Trails Program of the MA DCR. The grant would cover preliminary drainage and grading work on the existing unimproved rail trail along the Mill River from the Williamsburg-Northampton town line out to the foot of South Main Street, Haydenville, and pedestrian/bicycle improvements along the length of South Main.
· Williamsburg is launching a Brassworks Area subcommittee to consider the unique opportunities and challenges posed by the historic Brassworks mill site and its role in the larger Greenway project.
· We are working on a long-term plan to link Haydenville and Williamsburg Center with a dedicated Greenway lane along the river side of Route 9. The Mass. Dept. of Transportation will be re-building Route 9 sometime in the next decade, and we are already partners in helping design that roadway.
· In addition to the main Greenway corridor on the Route 9 road bed, the Williamsburg MRGC is considering the possibility of developing small-scale walking trails along the river where conditions permit.
2014 Riverwalks
SPACE IS LIMITED! Please email info@millrivergreenway.org to reserve your spot. Only pre-registered participants will receive information on the time and meeting place plus other important details. Thanks for your understanding.
We’re excited about taking folks out to explore the Mill River from River’s End at Arcadia Refuge to the site of the dam that gave way, causing the disastrous 1874 flood. We’re limiting these walks to 20 participants, so reserve your space. At least one of our co-moderators (Gaby, John, or Neal) will accompany the walks, along with local experts in the history and ecology of the river.
Mill Riverwalk Schedule 2014
Sponsored by the Mill River Greenway Initiative, Friends of Northampton Trails and Greenways and Smith College CEEDS (Center for the Environment, Ecological Design & Sustainability)
April 5 Downtown Northampton I: Paradise Pond to Old South Street
April 26 River’s End: Spring Paddle in the Floodplain Forest, Arcadia Wildlife Sanctuary
May 10 Downtown Northampton II: Old South Street to Hockanum Road
June 14 Bay State Village: Paradise Pond to the Cutlery Building
July 12 Florence I: Nonotuck Dam to Meadow Street
Sept. 6 Leeds: Cook’s Dam to River Road
Sept. 20 Florence II: Crimson & Clover/Northampton Community Farm
Oct. 4 Leeds to Haydenville: River Road to South Main Street
Nov. 1 Williamsburg, East Branch: Meekins Library to Old Dam Site
Dec. 6 Haydenville to Williamsburg: Brassworks to Skinnerville
