MATTAPOISETT — Residents gathered at Mattapoisett Town Hall to voice support and concern for a proposed project to rebuild Old Slough Road during a select board meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 24.

The proposed project would see a 12-foot-wide road built between Angelica Avenue and Bowman Road to provide a lifeline for residents of low-lying Point Connett and Angelica Point who could be stranded during storm conditions. 

The only way in or out of these neighborhoods is Angelica Avenue, which, according to recent reports, is at a high risk of flooding during coastal storms.

According to David Park, a Mattapoisett resident whose property abuts the proposed Old Slough Road, there is a risk of trees falling and blocking the proposed road during a major storm. 

“The trees are going to come down like crazy across this narrow road,” said Park. “So we need to go [through as little] wooded areas as possible. I think that's the objective for this road if we're going to do it.”

He went on to say that during his 15 years living in Mattapoisett he has seen a number of trees come down across the trail that would become Old Slough Road. 

Park offered to donate a portion of his own land to the town in order for the road to bypass some wooded areas. Mattapoisett Select Board Chair Tyler Macallister said that a land donation can only be accepted through a town meeting. 

“So we've talked a lot about trees on the road,” said Macallister. “First of all, this project, as I interpret it is: storm comes in, you’ve got to get the hell out of dodge — so you're out before the wind comes, that's the whole point.”

Going forward, Park said he will submit a formal proposal for a version of Old Slough Road that goes through less wooded land. 

It would cost over $600,000 to reconstruct Old Slough Road, said Mattapoisett Town Administrator Mike Lorenco. The town has already received two grants from the Coastal Resilience Grant Program. 

One $29,400 grant was for the design and engineering of the emergency access route, and another grant of $585,000 will be used to complete the permitting, bid documents and construction of the roadway.

The grants will cover the cost of the project and the town will provide labor on the project in-kind, said Lorenco.

The Mattapoisett Select Board will reconvene to discuss the Old Slough Road reconstruction project during a meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 14.

Attached to this article is a report compiled by the Town of Mattapoisett about the proposed plan to reconstruct Old Slough Road.