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Report to the Board of Selectmen West Lexington Greenway Master Plan December 2012 On behalf of the original members of the West Lexington Greenway Task Force and the current membership of the Greenways Corridor Committee, we are pleased to present the Board of Selectmen on behalf of the Town with this report summarizing the completed West Lexington Greenway Master Plan as prepared by Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc. (VHB). The West Lexington Greenway is the five -mile swath of primarily open space on the west side of Interstate 95/Route 128, and represents the largest assemblage of open space in Lexington. Ownership of the various parcels includes several Town properties most of which is in Conservation, as well as the City of Cambridge, NSTAR, the Boston Sports Club and individual property owners. Over the NSTAR parcels there are transportation easements. The work to develop this master plan began in the fall of 2006 with the formation of the ad hoc West Lexington Greenway Task Force representing interests on the part of the Lexington Conservation Stewards and the Bicycle Advisory Committee, which put together a proposal for funding utilizing Community Preservation Act funds. The proposal was approved by Town Meeting in the spring of 2007 and the firm of Vanasse Hangen & Brustlin, Inc. was hired to undertake the master planning process in the fall of 2007, with the project being managed jointly for the Town by Karen Mullins and Karen Simmons. After steady progress in the first year of the project, momentum was lost due in part to staffing problems at VHB, with the project successfully completed with final deliverables received in October 2012. Summary of Goals and Objectives of the planning process: • Layout and design the Minuteman Connector, a proposed bicycle /pedestrian path connecting the Minuteman Commuter Bikeway and the Battle Road Trail in the Minuteman National Historical Park, • Improve access and connections to all Town Conservation Areas located west of Route 128, • Improve the existing network of trails within the Greenway project area, • Use the Greenway as a means to preserve the existing historical, cultural and ecological resources, and as an educational tool to interpret these resources. • Complete the 25% Design Phase of the proposed Minuteman Connector route linking the Minuteman Commuter Bikeway with the Battle Road Trail in the Minuteman National Historical Park. Summary of Site Inventory Findings from the Master Plan document: An extensive inventory database for the study area was compiled by the consultant and distilled into a collection of maps supported by a written summary covering the following topics: