Several years ago a new raised crosswalk on the Farmington Canal Trail was installed at Hazel Street with a positive impact on public safety at this busy crossing for cyclists and pedestrians. We have been waiting several years for the installation of additional raised crossings for the at-grade intersections along the Trail in New Haven and southern Hamden.  The execution of this project has been complicated both by the pandemic and the fact that it is a joint New Haven/Hamden collaboration.

Hamden Town Engineer Stephen White has scheduled a virtual public meeting for the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail Raised Crossings Project. This will be a joint meeting with the City of New Haven as the project spans both Hamden and New Haven. The meeting date is July 13, 2023 at 6pm.

The Town of Hamden and City of New Haven are planning pedestrian and cyclist safety improvements. Improvements include the installation of raised crosswalks along the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail.

• New Haven Locations: Munson, Division, Thompson, Ivy, Brewster, Bassett Streets and Shelton Ave
• Hamden Locations: Goodrich, Alling, Dudley, Morse Streets and Hamden Park Dr

More information can be found at the Town of Hamden’s Engineering Department https://www.hamden.com/825/Farmington‐Canal‐Trail‐At‐Grade‐Crossing.

You are invited and encouraged to attend a Zoom Webinar/Meeting:

 THURSDAY, JULY 13, 2023 at 6:00 p.m.

Via Zoom Teleconference. Register in advance for this webinar: https://hamden.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_PRth10z0TUa8pxymmGVYHA

Dial: 1-646-931-860

Webinar ID: 882 6376 0429

Residents, business owners, commuters and other interested individuals are encouraged to take advantage of this opportunity to discuss the design phase of this project.  Anyone interested in obtaining further information, providing input or requiring language assistance may do so by contacting Stephen White, Hamden Town Engineer, at (203) 287-7040 or swhite@hamden.com

Members of the public are invited to
CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
VIRTUAL PUBLIC INFORMATION MEETING
State Project No. 109-176 Phase 2 of Farmington Canal Heritage Trail (Route 72 to Northwest Drive)
Town of Plainville (Town)
July 20, 2023 at 7:00 p.m.
Register: 0109-0176 Plainville (ct.gov)

YouTube Livestream: https://portal.ct.gov/ctdotvpimarchive

A Question & Answer session will immediately follow the presentation.

The purpose of this meeting is to provide the community an opportunity to learn about the proposed project and allow an open discussion of any views and comments concerning the proposed improvements.

The purpose of the project is to construct a multi-use trail known as the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail (FCHT) through the Town of Plainville to close a 5-mile gap in the Connecticut section of trail. The Connecticut share of the FCHT consists of a 54-mile section connecting New Haven through Suffield, terminating at the Massachusetts border. The entirety of the Connecticut trail section is either complete, in construction, or approaching final design, excluding the remaining 5-mile gap in the Town of Plainville. The 5-mile gap is proposed to be closed in three (3) project phases. Phase 2 includes construction of two (2) miles of multi-use trail between Route 72 and Northwest Drive.

There are right-of-way impacts associated with the proposed improvements. Construction will require twelve (12) partial property acquisitions on both Town-owned and private properties. All acquired property will be transferred to the Town upon project completion and following a Property Letter with Acceptance.

Construction is anticipated to begin in Fall 2025, based on the availability of funding, acquisition of rights of way, and approval of permit(s). The estimated construction cost for this project is approximately $15.5 million. This project is anticipated to be undertaken with eighty percent (80%) Federal funds and twenty percent (20%) State funds.

Please register for the Virtual Public Information Meeting at 0109-0176 Plainville (ct.gov). Registration is required to participate.

Once registered, you will receive a confirmation email with a link to access the meeting.

Members of the public may submit comments and questions during the two-week public comment period following the meeting. Please direct comments and questions by August 4, 2023 to: DOTProject109-176@ct.gov or (860) 594-2020, or to Mr. Scott Bushee, Project Manager, at Scott.Bushee@ct.gov; (860) 594-2079. Please reference State Project No. 109-176 in your email or voicemail.

ACCESSIBILITY
This meeting will also be livestreamed on YouTube and closed captioning will be available. Non-English translation options will be available on Zoom and YouTube. The recording will also be available on CTDOT’s YouTube Virtual Public Information Meeting playlist: https://portal.ct.gov/ctdotvpimarchive

Persons with limited internet access may use the call-in number (877) 853-5257 and enter Meeting ID 880 4467 8717. Persons with limited internet access may also request that project information be mailed to them within one week by contacting Mr. William Hogan at William.Hogan@ct.gov or (860) 594-2575.

Persons with hearing and/or speech disabilities may dial 711 for Telecommunications Relay Services (TRS). Language assistance may be requested by contacting CTDOT’s Language Assistance Call Line (860) 594-2109. Requests should be made at least five business days prior to the meeting. Language assistance is provided at no cost to the public and efforts will be made to respond to timely requests for assistance.

The Town of Plainville has arranged for a virtual viewing opportunity of the meeting at the Plainville Public Library, or the meeting can be joined remotely on Zoom by individuals at their desired location.

The Town of Avon has advised us that the Rt. 44 underpass on the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail will be undergoing improvements September. 19-21 and again on September 26-28.

Work will be conducted on one side of the tunnel at a time, allowing traffic to pass on the other side.  For the safety of the workers and all tunnel users, the Town asks that bicyclists dismount and walk through the tunnel during construction.  Signs will be posted at the tunnel approaches as a reminder.

Recently, the Farmington Valley lost an ardent trail advocate of many years’ standing. Al Ryan was a long-time, dedicated and hard-working member of our board. Al retired from the board a few years ago and died, peacefully, on November 16, 2021. We asked our fellow board members to contribute recollections of Al and have assembled them into this memorial. It does not begin to recognize our debt to all the work that Al did to the benefit of us all.

A few remembrances:

One way I like to remember Al was as the tall, unassuming guy who would do whatever needed to be done for the trail. He and I did a trail side table up at the Copper Hill Rd. trail crossing, at which Al did his best to keep crossing cyclists safe and confident.

Let’s not forget Al’s efforts with the trail counters. He collected all the necessary parts, fabricated the post containing the counter, fitted the counter into the post, and then installed the posts alongside the trail at locations specified by others.

We all remember Al as the quiet one who never said much at meetings, but when he did speak it was always something worth the attention of the Board. Al brought dignity and serious purpose whenever he spoke.

Here is a shot from our strategic planning weekend of several years ago:

He was also someone who enjoyed a good time, as seen here during a joint meeting with the FCRTTA Board at Renaissance Cyclery:

In addition to working on the Suffield portion of the trail with the town planner weekly for more than nine years, he spent much time modifying the specification for the state line monument.

He was instrumental in converting the Suffield portion of the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail over a nearly 10 year period.

Al Ryan’s obituary may be read at: https://www.legacy.com/us/obituaries/hartfordcourant/name/allen-ryan-obituary?id=31600960.