Let’s set the record straight on Estabrook Trail specifics

A recent letter to The Acton Bridge expresses confusion about whether the Estabrook Trail is owned by the trail abutters. The town says that the abutters are the rightful owners of the trail.

The letter also expresses concern about “losing access to the hundreds of acres of beautiful woodlands, ponds, and streams that lie beyond the disputed trail.” There are 17 ways for the public to enter the woods, and each of these entrances provide access to the entire woods. However, 93% of the woods is privately owned, and the threat of additional lawsuits by the town has caused several entrances and numerous trails to be closed by their owners.

The letter also suggests that abutters work with the town to form a reasonable set of guidelines for use of the trail, such as dog leashing requirements. Prior to the lawsuit, the landowners at the trail entrance led just such an effort (with town participation) to create a unified set of rules throughout the woods, and those rules ended up including mandatory dog leashing. This caused a handful of off-leash dog enthusiasts to work with their friends on the Select Board to bring the lawsuit, thinking that if the trail was a public way then they could disregard our leashing rules on our private land.

Finally, the letter notes that the courts ruled against the landowners twice. The Land Court ruled against us after the town had key landowner evidence thrown out using a motion in limine, but North Andover and 140 other Massachusetts towns have reintroduced similar evidence in support of the landowners at the Supreme Judicial Court. The Appeals Court ruled against us after disregarding all of the issues we brought before that court.

Brooks Read

Estabrook Road

Co-defendant, Town of Acton
v. Neil Rasmussen et al.