Next steps set for accessible trails at Lynn Woods

Despite some delays over the past month, members of the Lynn Disability Commission said they are progressing with efforts to make several trails at the Lynn Woods Reservation handicapped-accessible.?I think it?s really moving,” commission chair Lori Thompson said after a meeting at City Hall on Tuesday. “It?s a really good feeling.”There will be a walk-through at the Woods for those interested in the project on April 9 beginning at the ranger house on Pennybrook Road at 6 p.m.There, commission member Michael Cerulli said, park ranger Dan Small will “walk us through the three separate trails we plan on refurbishing. (We?ll get an) idea of what materials we?ll need, how much labor, the work schedule.”Cerulli indicated that the work needed for the project includes “signage, walkways and ramps.”Cerulli?s goal is for these trails to be open on Memorial Day “if possible,” he said.Asked about funding for the project, Cerulli said, “All privately funded. Not a nickel from the government.” He added that “people have volunteered material, equipment and labor,” although he said that an assessment of the job has not been completed yet.The commission met for about a half-hour on Tuesday, and the trails issue was the first item on the agenda. Commission member Nick Capano, who has spina bifida and moves in a wheelchair, addressed the issue. An attempt by Capano to visit the Woods last fall, in which he had difficulty with the trails, helped generate a move to make certain trails accessible.Asked about progress on the issue between last month, when the commission met after a two-month recess, and last night, Cerulli said, “Quite frankly, not as much as I hoped. I hoped we?d be further along.”The New England climate has proven an obstacle.?The weather has not been in our favor,” commission member Roger Ennis said.?It?s quite wet there now,” Cerulli said.Now, he added, “it?s drying out. We anticipate it will be dried out and firm the end of next week. It?ll be better.”Even this week, it sounds like spring is returning to the Woods.?The frogs are vocal in the vernal pool (Tuesday),” Thompson said.