Upcoming events (save the dates!)
PLANNING COMMITTEE MEETING: There will be a FNTG planning committee meeting on Monday, July 21st at 7:00pm (location TBD).
Previous events
SOUTHAMPTON GREENWAY EVENING LECTURE: There will be a lecture on rail trails by State Representative Michael Knapik May 1st, 2008 at 6:30pm. More information can be found at http://www.southamptongreenway.org.
EVENING LECTURE: There was a lecture on "Trails and Greenways, Inspiring people to do things beyond their wildest dreams" by Craig Della Penna at Forbes Library on Wednesday, March 19th, 2008 at 7:00pm.
ANNUAL MEETING: There was a planning committee meeting for the Friends of Northampton Trails and Greenways on Monday, August 27th at 7:00pm at the Sugar Maple Trailside Inn on Chestnut Street in Florence. The meeting consisted of elections of officers, review of the signage proposal, and consideration of plans for the upcoming year.
SPRING/SUMMER MEETING: The spring/summer meeting of the Friends of Northampton Trails and Greenways will be held in conjunction with the Massachusetts Central Rail Trail on Thursday, July 26th. There will be a walking and biking tour of the trails at 3:00pm, and an evening meeting/lecture (5:00pm) followed by a no-host dinner. Be sure to save the date!
TUESDAY EVENING RIDES: For 2007, there will be FREE guided bike tours every first through fourth Tuesday in May, June, July and August. These are all rides that are not difficult, or fast, but they are more of an educational experience. More information can be found here.
All rides will start at 6:15 p.m. promptly--and return to point of origin by dusk. There will be no rides on the 5th Tuesday of the month--and once again, no charge for the rides. Half the rides will start at the Sugar Maple Trailside Inn, 62 Chestnut St. Florence, MA. The others will start at the trail head noted below. Capacity of each ride will be 20 riders and all participants must RSVP ahead of time. (phone at 413-575-2277 or email at craig@craigdp.com ) No heavy hills will be encountered though some safe, on-road portions will be a part of each ride.
BIKE WEEK (Week of May 14th, see http://www.pvpc.org for a schedule of events, including our trail tour on Thursday, May 17th)
TRAIL CLEANUP: There was a trail cleanup on Saturday, April 21st from 9:30am-12:30pm as well as on Sunday, April 29th. Please come and bring the kids and join your neighbors for some good clean fun! Come meet us at one of these locations along the City of Northampton bike trail:
a) the intersection with Hatfield Street, near the cement plant
b) the intersection with Bardwell St. in Florence
c) the end of the trail at State Street behind Stop & Shop
We will supply the bags, but B.Y.O.S. (Bring Your Own Stuff), if you can-including brooms, rakes, garden carts, trash barrels, and work gloves. A flyer can be found here.
For more information, please contact: Julia 413-587-0340. See you there!
WILD FOODS WALK: Noted wild foods author Blanche Cybele Derby will guide a walk and point out edible plants along the Northampton Bike Path on Sunday, April 29th at 1 PM. Afterward she will offer a tasting. Contact Ida Nystrom (508-829-9709 or inystrom@earthlink.net) to register.
PLANNING MEETING (Wednesday, February 28th). Agenda items included approval of the budget for the year, consideration of publication of the map, upcoming meetings and other projects.
WALKING TOURS: Two walking tours took place this winter. In December, an intrepid group of 20 met in the JFK parking lot near 100 Bridge Road and proceeded along Route 9 to the VA, crossed over into Look Park and joined the trail. We explored along the old rail bed towards the bridge at Arch St, then returned through Look Park. I anticipate that the tour will take between 60-90 minutes. In January, a group of 25 braved nearly 70 degree weather to explore from the Smith College Physical Plant and the Mill River Crossing to the planned expansion across Main Street at Union Station.
EVENING MEETING: Greenways and Green Infrastructure: A Strategy for Sustainability?
Jack Ahern, Professor and Chair, Department of Landscape Architecture University of Massachusetts/Amherst
Monday, November 13th, 2006, 7:00pm McConnell 103, Smith College Clark Science Center
Planning for sustainable communities is a complex process addressing the economic, environmental and socially-equitable dimensions of sustainability. Greenways and green-spaces play a key role in this development. On Monday, November 13th at 7:00pm, Jack Ahern, Professor and Chair of Landscape Architecture at UMass Amherst, will provide an accessible overview of theories and practices of landscape ecology with examples from nearby as well as around the world that we might be able to apply in Northampton. He will focus on the creation of “green infrastructures,” an emerging design concept for cities and towns utilizing a system of hybrid hydrological/drainage network with protected or opportunistic green areas to provide a city-wide plan for different ecological functions. The results help to sustain diverse and healthy wildlife, recreation and transportation along with built environments.
PLANNING MEETING: Wednesday, August 16th, 2006, 6:00pm, Required revision of purpose statement and amendment of bylaws
location TBD.
PLANNING MEETING : Monday, July 17th, 2006, 7:00pm
Brainstorming Map distribution, Application for Signage grant, Arts on the Trail and Financial update
SPRING MEETING : Monday, June 5th, 2006, 7:00pm
Rail Trails in Northampton: Past, Present and Future. Wayne Feiden spoke on "The coming trails and greenways in Northampton: what's next and how we are getting there". Wayne is Director of the Office of Planning and Development for the City of Northampton, and has been working to create a spine of trails and greenways that connect the entire City. Through the creative use of mapping software and images, he led a virtual tour of the trail network, beginning with the extension of the Norwottuck Rail Trail from Damon Rd. to the King St. area, the extension of the Nagle Walkway to Veterans Field, Route 66 and Earle Street, and the extension of the Bikeway to Look Park and Leeds. Wayne discussed plans for a "rail-with-trail" along King Street from the Stop and Shop to Union Station, and connection with the Manhan Rail Trail in Easthampton. The meeting, attended by nearly 70 people, featured the public unveiling of the map of the Northampton rail-trails.
TRAIL CLEANUP: Saturday, April 22nd, 2006, 1:00-4:00pm.
PLANNING MEETING: February 20th, 2006
ORGANIZATIONAL MEETING: December 5th, 2005. Craig Della Penna spoke about projects underway in Northampton and the region, and the ways that a Friends organization could help to improve the existing and planned trails in our community.
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