Welcome to the Mason Square Community Rail-Trail

In the heart of Springfield’s McKnight Neighborhood there is a long-forgotten railroad corridor that stretches around the neighborhood like a lucky horseshoe. Nestled between dozens of homes and Oak Grove Cemetery, industrial areas, and long tracts of hidden woods, lies a great opportunity for the McKnight Neighborood , the Mason Square Community, and the City of Springfield.

The abandoned rail corridor, now called the Mason Square Community Rail-Trail, is approximately two miles in length. The tracks have been removed, but the wooden rail ties still remain—now almost entirely hidden beneath the flora and fauna.

The former corridor is a testament to the great possibilities and diversity of the neighborhood and city. On portions of the trail there are no visible structures—only trees rise up quietly from rail banks that once rumbled with passing freight cars. What a blessing to be surrounded by nature, and to feel alone in a city of 150,000. Walk a little farther, and giant blue industrial fuel storage tanks rise up, a reminder of our city’s industrial past and present. An old train bridge still stands on its granite foundation, its steel girders waiting for new wooden planks to hold up hikers and bikers. A hawk circles over the dry grass and disappears into the woods. In a sense, the corridor is a linear park that gets few visitors, but has a growing fan base.

In brief, what we’re trying to do is to turn the abandoned rail line into a hiking and biking trail. A task no doubt easier said than done. We can do it, but we cannot do it alone. Go for a hike on this blog to learn more about the trail. If you would like to learn how you can get involved, please contact us—and don’t forget to take a virtual tour of the trail while you’re here.



The Arch of Recreation as seen by Urban Design Students

Students at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst — Department of Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning, have provided the below images. Dubbed the Arch of Recreation by the urban design students, their representations of the trail reflect a creative and thoughtful approach to the corridor's full potential.

To see more of their work, scroll down and click on the slideshow.

This is a sketch of the gas storage tank between the trail and Albany Street. Like the slide show on this blog that has photos of the gas tank, this sketch also shows the potential beauty of the tanks.

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

A Few Links Added

I added a few links to the blog to help people research rail-trails. You can find other groups that are undertaking the same type of project we're working on here in Springfield, or learn more about issues surrounding rail-trails and agencies that are working to make Springfield a better place.

Don't miss the Enhancements link--this is the Federally funded program that is largely responsible for financing the new rail-trail in neighboring East Longmeadow. It's likely that our project will be funded by Enhancement funds, which the City of Springfield would have to apply for. There is the slight possibility that the McKnight Neighborhood Council, or another nonprofit could apply for the funds, but the city would ultimately have to undersign the deal.

Also, make sure to look at the Bruce Freeman Rail-Trail, the web site is a well-organized wealth of information.

Don't skip the Springfield Wellness Council's Partners for a Healthier Community, Inc, which was specifically founded to have a impact on the health of Springfield. This is exactly the type of advocacy group the rail-trail project needs. Representatives of the rail-trail working group will be making a presentation to the Wellness Council in the upcoming months.
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1 comment:

  1. Dear Neil,
    great that you are working on this.
    Our students from UMASS - Landscape Architecture and Regional Planning did a lot of visual work in 2008 and presented it to the McKnight community.
    I would be most happy to share this with you.
    We also came up with a name for the trail segment from Mason Square to Armory Street:
    The ARC OF RECREATION.

    Best regards,
    Frank Sleegers
    sleegers@larp.umass.edu

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