Work begins on Creek Path
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Stafford Technical Center forestry students help build a new multiuse path in Rutland City on Monday. Vyto Starinskas / Rutland Herald |
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By STEPHANIE M. PETERS STAFF WRITER - Published: April 27, 2010
The buzz of chainsaws and grinding of a wood chipper in the woods off Earl Street on Monday morning signified a milestone long in the making for one of the city's volunteer groups.
Work on the Rutland Creek Path is officially under way.
With the project's key organizers looking on proudly from behind yellow tape outlining the path's course through the woods, seven Stafford Technical Center forestry students, two instructors and City Forester David Schneider made their first pass at an obstacle course of brush, stumps, weeds and trees, both living and fallen.
The moment was the culmination of a bittersweet month for both the students and path organizers. On March 27, Stafford's forestry teacher Mark Skakel, who had worked closely with leaders from the Creative Economy's Recreation Committee to plan for his students to provide their service as an in-kind match to the project, died unexpectedly. It was the same week that the path organizers had learned that the path was awarded a $300,000 transportation enhancement grant from the Agency of Transportation to build the first segment.
The school very quickly decided that Skakel's students would continue the work in his memory. In the past couple of weeks they hired local foresters Rob Barker and Mary Helm to guide his class through the remainder of the school year.
"Are we ready to hear some chainsaw noise?" Barker asked the class Monday morning.
"Yeah," the students said, flipping down their orange helmets, newly decorated in Rutland Creek Path euro stickers and smaller maple leafs emblazoned with the name "Mark." Both were given to them minutes before by Paul Gallo, one of the project's main organizers.
"I'm sure Mark will be watching over you guys," he said as he handed them out. "Just be safe, all right?"
For the immediate future, Monday will serve as the tangible product of a lot of tiresome planning, grant writing and fundraising work done by the Recreation Committee. The students' work clearing the 20-foot-wide easement of city land stretching from Earl Street through the woods behind Rutland Northwest School – more commonly known as "stumping and grubbing" to foresters – is expected to continue well into the fall, if not next spring. Construction is expected to begin in 2011.
In the meantime, Gallo and fellow organizers Sherman Hunter, Susan Schreibman and Michael Smith will turn their attention to fundraising and grant applications to make sure they can cover the cost of all four segments of the project.
The total cost of the path, which will stretch from Giorgetti Park to Dorr Drive, is estimated at $1.8 million. Although local match funds have been raised for the path's first segment, which after beginning at Giorgetti travels through the woods off of Earl Street to State Street, about $360,000 still needs to be raised to meet the match for future grants. The group hopes to apply for another $300,000 transportation enhancement grant in August, according to Schreibman.
They also hope to share more information about the path with the public through a new website, www.rutlandcreekpath.com. Anyone interested in donating to the effort should soon be able to do so through the website, according to Hunter. The Rutland Regional Planning Commission is acting as the project's fiscal agent, which makes all donations tax deductible, Schreibman said.
stephanie.peters@rutlandherald.com
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