Voters Endorse $6.8 Million For New Tom Nevers Bike Path

While several big-ticket spending proposals were defeated during Saturday's Annual Town Meeting, voters quickly and overwhelmingly approved a $6.8 million appropriation to design and build a new bike path along Tom Nevers Road.

Article 14, which had a positive motion from the Finance Committee, was called for debate by Select Board candidate Brook Gibbs. As voters returned to the auditorium after a lunch break on Saturday, Gibbs withdrew his call of the article, and the vote proceeded without any further discussion.

The final vote was: 

• Yes: 287

• No: 49

Article 14 required a two-thirds majority, which it easily obtained. It must also be approved on the ballot as Question No. 3 during the annual town election later this month.

While the possibility of a bike path along Tom Nevers Road had been discussed for years, it took on a renewed urgency last summer after island attorney Steven Cohen was struck and badly injured by a vehicle while walking along the road on the morning of July 9, 2024.

Cohen survived the accident and was watching Town Meeting on Saturday when he sent the Current this message:

"I'm glad that the Tom Nevers Road bike path was adopted, no particular reason," Cohen wrote dryly in a text message. "I hope people will vote to pass the money in the election later this month." 

Tom Nevers Road connects Milestone Road to one of the town-owned south shore beaches, along with the recreational facilities at the old Tom Nevers Navy Base. A bike path to get pedestrians and bicyclists safely off the roadway had been discussed for decades.

Partial funding for its design was approved at the 2019 Annual Town Meeting, and the $6.8 million appropriation will allow the town to complete the planning and permitting - including easement acquisitions - and then construction.

The approximately two-mile-long path will run from the intersection of Milestone Road out to the old Navy base playing fields along Tom Nevers Road. It would run along the east side of the road and could include a portion that would be a raised boardwalk along a low-lying conservation property owned by the Land Bank.

If approved at the ballot, the project would mean that the average year-round property valued at just over $2 million, with the residential exemption, would see an annual property tax increase of $14.66.

Below is the town's video describing the project that was released ahead of Saturday's Annual Town Meeting: