Why would a developer pay $1.7 million for 23.77 undeveloped acres off Whitney Street? In early 2024 the answer was the railroad. Howland Development Corporation had proposed buying 432 Whitney St. for a 40,000- to 60,000-square-foot commercial, industrial, warehouse, or distribution building, and its statement of proposed use said the building could connect to the adjacent freight rail line.
Two and a half years later, that same parcel is Barefoot Brook Woods, Northborough's newest trail system. Railroad work also explains why most of us have to approach it from the far side. The Whitney Street bridge over the tracks has been closed since December 2025, and the town's own trail page says driving access is currently only available from the Berlin side.
What's out there this fall
The Northborough Trails Committee built the first phase of a new loop system on the property in fall 2026. It's the Heron Loop Trail, a 0.9-mile path marked with yellow blazes that leads to a pond the town describes as a good spot for wildlife viewing. Dedicated parking and the trailhead are at the main entrance off Whitney Street.
The site sits north of Interstate 290, near Maynard Street, Barefoot Brook, and the Solomon Pond Road area. It also borders existing land owned by the Department of Conservation and Recreation. In June, the Trails Committee recorded that DCR had approved trail development on its property and that the trail was marked and partially complete. Part of what you walk may run onto state land next door.
I found no formal ribbon-cutting or opening walk on record. In June the committee was aiming for a soft opening in late summer, and the town's trail page now lists the loop, the parking, and the access point.
How the woods ended up as a trail and not a warehouse site
In early 2024 the Select Board said it wanted the town to use its right of first refusal on the parcel, which was then owned by Santo Anza. Town Meeting took up the purchase in April 2024, and residents approved it 260 to 67.
The town paid the $1.7 million entirely from Community Preservation Act funds:
| CPA source | Amount |
|---|---|
| Unreserved fund | $817,653 |
| Conservation fund | $664,073 |
| New revenue | $218,274 |
| Total | $1,700,000 |
When the article came up, Community Preservation Committee Chair John Campbell described the deal this way:
As the Community Advocate reported, "We're quite happy about the opportunity to acquire the land with all of our CPA reserves, no additional town revenue needed, no additional bonding, no additional borrowing."
Campbell also said that after the committee made its recommendation, it learned DCR was willing to put $200,000 toward conserving the property and hold the conservation restriction for no fee. The coverage I reviewed doesn't say whether that contribution was ever paid.
The town's plan was always for more than trails. Town leaders described the land as being for open space and recreation, plus a small affordable housing project of four to eight units. The trail is the first part of that plan to show up.
The same railroad keeps the bridge closed
The Whitney Street bridge, near SA Farms, carries the road over the railroad and is owned by MassDOT. At an October 20 meeting, Public Works Director Scott Charpentier told the Select Board that an inspection had found broken strands in the bridge beams, leaving part of the structure with "no weight bearing capacity whatsoever." The board voted unanimously to close it.
MassDOT closed the bridge on Tuesday, December 9, 2025, at 7 a.m., "until further notice." Signed detours run along Bearfoot Road, Solomon Pond Road, and River Road West, and local access is maintained.
The closure is expected to last a long time because the repair is over a railroad. At the Traffic Safety Committee meeting the day the bridge closed, Charpentier said the closure would last at least two years. He cited the complications of working over a railroad owned by CSX, plus the required design, approval, bidding, and construction steps. He had already told the Select Board that a closed bridge isn't a "high priority matter" for the state when it schedules repairs.
The two-year figure was an estimate from December 2025, not a schedule. I haven't found a reopening date since then. The trail page still describes the closure as ongoing.
Getting to the Heron Loop this month
For a Saturday visit in October:
- Plan to come in from Berlin. The town says driving access to the Whitney Street entrance is currently only from the Berlin side. Map your route that way before you leave so you don't end up at the barricades.
- Expect the signed detour roads. Bearfoot Road, Solomon Pond Road, and River Road West are the posted routes around the closed bridge.
- Check for roadwork on Hudson Street. Public Works scheduled work on Hudson Street from Solomon Pond Road to Boundary Street, and on Gale and Monroe streets, starting Thursday, October 1, 2026, and continuing into the following week. The notice warns of delays, alternate routes, and single-lane two-way traffic, and says the schedule can shift with weather or equipment.
- Park at the main entrance. The trailhead and dedicated parking are both off Whitney Street.
What's planned next for the land
A second loop is in the works. In May 2026, the Trails Committee said it planned to work on a second loop this fall. By July 21, the most recent minutes I found, members were still discussing "when and how we would build the DCR trails," along with cleanup of the site. So more trail is planned, but no timeline has been set.
The land itself will affect how fast that happens. In June, the Conservation Commission chair raised concerns about protecting the property's three intermittent streams, both during construction and over the long term. On July's maintenance report, a volunteer ran the brush cutter down the trailhead access to clear it. The work on this loop is careful and done by volunteers.
Fitting it into the rest of the trail system
Barefoot Brook Woods arrives just as the Trails Committee is refreshing its Wegmans trail passport. Wegmans' Hit the Trail Passport program lists "Discovering the Trails of Northborough" among its community trails. In June, the committee reported that the new booklets had been printed and copies handed out. Badges were due within a week or two, and installing the posts was the next step. In July, members were still working out how to anchor the posts and voted $450 for a post-hole auger. The minutes I reviewed don't say which trails get markers, so if you're collecting badges this fall, check before you head out.
Guided hikes may be coming too. At the July meeting, Algonquin student Jayani Lagadapati proposed recruiting volunteers to lead more guided hikes on the town's trails. Committee members supported the idea, and she was also meeting with Parks and Rec to coordinate. No dates have been posted.
If you want a stop on the way home, Davidian's Farm is at 500 Church Street and lists its hours as 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekdays and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekends. The farm says its bakery makes plain and cinnamon-sugar cider doughnuts daily, along with pies. Those are the farm's standing hours, not a fall-specific schedule.
Downtown, the Blake and Pierce streets sidewalk project started its first phase on September 29. It adds accessible sidewalks, lighting, crosswalks, and a rapid-flashing beacon, plus parking and landscape improvements at War Memorial Park. Completion is estimated for late November or early December 2026. Both streets stay open, but traffic may drop to one lane and parts of nearby lots may close.
A long-term bridge closure changes how people get around a part of town, and it can come up when a home nearby goes on the market. If you live near Whitney Street and want to know how the closure and the new conservation land figure into a future sale or purchase, Christina Liberty Grimm is happy to walk through it with you. Schedule Your Free Consultation.
