Bringing the Air Line Trail to Portland

The Jonah Center for Earth and Art invites the public to a presentation and
planning forum on extending the Air Line multi-use trail from East Hampton
to Portland, on Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2013, at 7 p.m. in the Mary Flood Room of
the Portland Library.

The program will be led by John Shafer, President of the Jonah Center for
Earth and Art, and Deanna Rhodes, Planning and Zoning Administrator for the
Town of Portland. They will describe the project using maps, ground level
and aerial photographs, cost estimates, potential funding sources, and
elements of the planning and community organizing tasks that will be
required to realize this vision. 

The Air Line State Park Trail follows the right-of-way of the former Air
Line Railroad, which was built to connect Boston and New York City in the
latter half of the 19th century. The corridor was known as the Air Line
because it traced the most direct route possible - as if by a line drawn
through the air. For 86 years, from 1873 to 1959, the Air Line provided a
high-speed passenger rail connection between these prominent northeast
cities. 

In 1975, the Air Line rail corridor was deeded to the Connecticut Department
of Environmental Protection (DEP), and in 1996 the DEP proposed
rehabilitating the rail bed as a linear state park. The 17.6 mile stretch
between East Hampton and Windham is presently the most improved and popular
section of the trail, featuring scenic bridges, ponds, marshes, and gorges.

For more information about the program or the Jonah Center, contact John
Hall at 860-398-3771 or visit www.thejonahcenter.org.