The Rails to Trails Committee is “two signatures away” from starting construction of the North Brook Trail, according to committee chairman Robert Gilchrest.
He told his committee Thursday night that the $774,406 contract between Yield Industries and the town has been approved by town counsel. A performance and materials bond will be connected with the package, along with the project’s specifications and drawings.
“It makes a completed contract,” Gilchrest told his board members. All that remains is to have First Selectman Henry Tirrell]and Yield’s president Craig Bothroyd, sign it and work can start in August.
The town will start paying for the project using the $399,000 state grant it received in 2023 but has yet to receive confirmation that a second state grant of $226,000 will awarded. After much delay on the part of the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, the state issued a final permit for the trail work this March, three years after the town received the first grant. In the meantime, beaver activity along the trail route changed the topography, requiring a redesign of the boardwalk and trail at an additional cost.
Gilchrest said he was told that grant awards will be announced in September. He remains optimistic that the town will get the additional funding, but said the town has enough money in hand to do virtually all the work to a point beyond the boardwalk. “After that, it would be up to us if we don’t get the second grant,” he said.
The town will also have to file for an extension for its current grant because the money will not all be expended by the September 26 deadline. “We have to apply by July 28,” he said, “documenting the reasons why.” He said he has been assured the extension will be granted.
The committee will ask to borrow money to start the project from the town. Normally, it would take out a bank loan to pay the contractor’s bills while it waits for reimbursement from the state. But the construction timeframe will be short, and Tirrell is comfortable with using town money and having the committee reimburse the local government.
Committee member Matt Riiska explained that if the town were to seek a bank loan, it would entail lawyer’s fees and interest payments, which can be avoided by using town money. “Henry spoke to the town treasurer, and the town has enough money in its capital reserve account,” said Riiska.