Newbury Recreation Commission Weighs $44,000 Trail Design Study
Newbury Recreation Commission stalls on a $44,000 wetlands review for its long-planned fields walking trail.
Recreation Commission · Meeting of January 5, 2026
Newbury Recreation Commission stalls on a $44,000 wetlands review for its long-planned fields walking trail. Consultant Chris Huntress told the board in written correspondence that the proposed loop crosses a wetlands buffer zone, requiring an updated survey, wetland delineation and a notice of intent to the Conservation Commission, "higher than I would like" at roughly $44,000. Members weighed drawing on the commission's reserve fund or redesigning the route to avoid the wetland area, with one member noting, "if it costs 44 grand to get the T's crossed, then yeah." The board separately confirmed a twice-weekly Council on Aging pickleball program starts this Thursday through April, with Tom Andrews opening and closing the facility, and pressed for a recurring DPW field-aeration schedule after years without one.
The commission adjourned at 7:07 p.m. with no funding vote taken.
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Source: the Recreation Commission meeting of January 5, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.
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