LIVERMORE FALLS — A group hoping to connect the schools in Jay and Livermore Falls by recreational trails along the Androscoggin River will now have the help the of the National Park Service, Jonathan LaBonte, executive director of the Androscoggin Land Trust, said Tuesday.

Julie Isbill, a Brunswick-based park service employee who worked with the land trust to plan and develop the concept of the Androscoggin Greenway, will assist in planning the trail system, LaBonte said.

The focus will be on how to build a trail that will safely connect the schools via a riverside trail with connections to downtown and the Otis Mill complex, according to a statement issued by LaBonte.

“During the relicensing of the hydroelectric dams in Jay and Livermore
Falls, (the trust) successfully conserved nearly 1,200 acres of land and six
miles of frontage on the river in this region,” LaBonte said. “We see this trail planning project,
connecting open spaces to the downtown area, as the next phase of our
engagement in support of this community’s revitalization along the
banks of the Androscoggin.”

Phil Poirier of the Livermore Falls Downtown Betterment Group and co-chairman of the steering committee for this project, described the potential of the trail.

“There is the great possibility of a collaborative effort between the two towns which have at times in the past found little common ground,” Poirier said. “There is also the idea that this path can and should be a Heritage Walk, taking you on a journey through the rich industrial history that both towns have as their backbone.”

A steering group, consisting of representatives from the land trust, the downtown development group, industrial heritage museum, town and school officials and interested residents and businesses, will meet once a month to move the initiative forward, according to the statement. The group will also host public informational meetings and community outings “to connect people to the vision for this section of the river,” the statement said.

Those interested in getting involved directly may contact the Androscoggin Land Trust by email at: [email protected].

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