Irony and Chutzpah
Turns out the Massachusetts mom-and-pop-plus-kids family of the modest scenic RailRiders, as quoted by the Monitor, is offering New Hampshire, “a very large 6-figure-plus donation” toward purchase of six miles of rail to keep their Concord tourist attraction in business for decades. Irony?
In August, the Concord City Council overwhelmingly voted to pursue the purchase of the corridor. The Merrimack River Greenway wants to use those six miles to expand and connect the trail from Horseshoe Pond in Concord to the Great Northern Rail Trail in Boscawen.
Testimony at the council meeting was clear — the understanding by which RailRiders got approval to run pedal cars along the rails was under a temporary, stress temporary, lease. Now RailRiders wants to help the state buy the rails in return for “a 25-year lease with renewal option” for the public property. Chutzpah?
We have signed the Greenway’s petition urging the state to support Concord’s plan to give the public more opportunities to bask in Merrimack River’s beauty for bicyclists, walkers, runners and moms with baby strollers to enjoy as the trail grows.