Baboosic Greenway Rail Trail Project

The Baboosic Greenway Rail Trail Project, also referred to as the North O2 project, first surfaced in public meetings through an engineering study presentation on segment constraints and costs. On 2026-04-13 the board received the DHB findings and heard initial public testimony on privacy, safety, property rights, and Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee conduct, after which it entered an assessment phase tasked with endorsing alternatives and meeting stakeholders.

At the 2026-04-22 meeting the Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee outlined the project's history and connectivity goals while the Conservation Commission raised unconsulted wetland and endangered-species concerns; the board postponed any build-versus-no-build decision to allow further consultation. This deferral directly set up the dedicated public-input session on 2026-05-05, where abutters including the Mayors and others detailed limited footpath easements and alleged BPAC overreach, prompting the board to signal a charter review.

The causal chain culminated on 2026-05-11 when consultant options for segments 1, 3, and 4 were presented alongside easement, budget, and environmental constraints; the board then voted 3-1-1 for a no-build outcome on all segments.

At the 2026-05-26 meeting a resident in the citizen forum attributed the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee's mass resignation to governance confusion over the Baboosic Greenway project and called for clearer town leadership oversight of advisory bodies. The board then voted 5-0 to accept the resignations dated May 12, 2026, and formally disband the committee, citing the need for a structural overhaul before any successor is formed.