-advocating for the Wakefield-Lynnfield  Rail Trail project.

Lynnfield Rail Trail

Personal Statement from Tom Grilk, CEO Boston Athletic Assoc./ Boston Marathon    

I have resided in Lynnfield since 1988.  The rail trackbed proposed for a fitness trail abuts my backyard.  I strongly endorse the development of the fitness trail as an important and much needed benefit for our community.

In my role as Chief Executive Officer of the Boston Athletic Association/Boston Marathon, and previously as a business lawyer working locally, nationally and internationally, I have had the opportunity to observe and use many such fitness trails. Wherever they are built they are highly valued and widely used as a safe and tranquil place to pursue personal health and fitness, whether walking, running, cycling, pushing children, etc.  They are highly prized assets that enhance both the health of residents and the value of their property, as prospective residents seek out places to live that provide so important an asset to family life. And compared to other public health and fitness assets, these facilities are minimally costly to maintain.

Whether as nearby as Peabody or Lexington,  or in more distant locales such as New Hampshire, Michigan, California, Germany or countries in Asia, I have yet to see a fitness trail that did not become a treasured asset of the communities privileged to be served by it.  I welcome it to my back yard.

We have expended significant funds in a splendid effort to enhance our Town playing fields, largely for our kids. We should do no less for the entirety of the population. 

The space is there for the taking; it would be tragic to waste it.

 Thomas S. Grilk