TownBites: Trail Bridge, Cowboy Lewis Trail, Culvert, Tractor Parade and Bradley Cemetery
by Edd Merritt and Nancy Wood,
August 25, 2011, paage 4.....

VYCC crew bridges the county.

A week after they cleared trails and built bridges in the LaPlatte Nature Park in Shelburne, the nine-member crew from the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps (VYCC) headed south to Charlotte to begin work on the Co-housing Trail running south of that development between Greenbush Road and Route 7. With crew leaders Phil Batallion and Haley Walker leading the way – and under close scrutiny from Polly Simpkin’s golden retriever – they laid a bridge over a creek that is currently dry, but that had presented an obstacle to small mowers on the trail. VYCC has had 18 crews working on projects around the state this summer.

The bridge was completed August 19, followed by a brief dedication and ribbon-cutting ceremony. Margaret Russell, co-chair of the Trails Committee, thanked the VYCC crew and said the bridge is an important link in the Charlotte trails network. The project is part of the ongoing efforts of the Trails Committee and the Town to create an alternative transportation trail in Charlotte. The Old Brick Store provided Chesters ice cream sandwiches, which were enjoyed by the VYCC workers and a small crowd of neighbors and town officials. The work was funded by a grant secured by the Trails Committee, plus $750 authorized by the Selectboard for materials.

Cowby Lewis Trail will soon be open.

Workers from A G Fence in Bridport spent the day August 11 removing the old fence, digging postholes and stringing new fencing on the north side of the Town’s easement on Ferry Road, also known as the Cowboy Lewis/Knowles Trail. The Selectboard authorized $1,900 for the work at its June 27 meeting, leaving as an open question where the money is to come from. Chair Charles Russell said the purpose was to provide a safe path for people so they don’t have to walk on Ferry Road. According to John Limanek, chair of the Trails Committee, the trail is being brushhogged this week and will be mowed regularly. It extends from the Railroad Station to the Knowles’ homestead, and a bridge needed to cross a stream is in the works.

Culvert replaced on Spear Street.

Spear Street between the Quinlan Bridge (Monkton Road) and Guinea Road was closed briefly last week while Lewis Excavating removed an old concrete culvert, replaced it with a larger culvert and rebuilt the road above it. The new culvert was paid for by the state, while the Town budget covered the work.

Tractor Parade planning has begun.

The Tractor Parade Committee held its first official meeting of the year Monday night to begin planning this year’s East Charlotte Tractor Parade. The 11th annual parade will be held on Saturday, October 9, preceded by a barn dance at the Old Lantern Friday evening, October 8. The Starline Rhythm Boys will be the headliners again for the dance.
The committee is now an official committee of the Town, for insurance reasons. Members include Carrie Spear, Debbie Christie, June Bean, Cindy Bradley and Margaret Roddy. Meetings will be warned and open to the public; anyone with an interest in helping is encouraged to attend.

Gravestones are lifted at Bradley Cemetery.

Adam Allegretta has a new job: digging around the old gravestones at the Bradley Cemetery, also known as the East Burying Ground.

Cemetery Commissioner Stephen Brooks says that the work is being done so that the stones can be raised and reset. Last year the Anthropology Department at UVM surveyed the cemetery to locate unmarked graves and buried headstones. The cemetery is located on the west side of Spear Street, about one half mile north of Baptist Corners.

Allegretta, who will be a senior at CVU, expects to work weekends through the fall.