A bicycle pump track, a new fire truck, and public art installations are all headed to Andover, backed by $320,000 in fresh state money from the fiscal year 2027 budget Gov. Maura Healey signed on Wednesday, July 9.
Sen. Barry Finegold, D-Andover, requested all five earmarks through the legislative budget process, his office confirmed to Andover News.
The two largest line items are each $100,000. One goes to the town's municipal improvements reserve for maintenance and upkeep of public buildings. The other funds a vehicle replacement and emergency response materials for the Andover Fire Department.
Three smaller earmarks round out the package:
- $50,000 for construction of a pump track at Recreation Park, a looping bicycle skills course with rolling mounds and banked turns that riders navigate by shifting their body weight rather than pedaling. The 28-acre park already has tennis courts, pickleball courts, baseball fields, and an ice rink but no cycling facility.
- $50,000 for public art projects in town.
- $20,000 for the Andover Housing Authority to cover courtyard improvements at Stowe Court, a 40-unit elderly and disabled housing complex off Chestnut Court built in 1982.
Finegold told Andover News in an email that the budget "strikes the right balance of funding initiatives our communities rely on while keeping in mind the Commonwealth's long-term economic stability and growth."
The earmarks are subject to the state's budget distribution process before funds reach the town. No timeline has been announced for when the money will arrive or when pump track construction might begin, and the town has not released design plans or solicited contractor bids.
The FY2027 budget also carries statewide provisions that touch Andover, including continued funding for universal free school meals in public schools, a new grant program to help districts address social media's impact on students, and money for infrastructure improvements aimed at preventing wrong-way driving crashes.
The Legislature approved the spending plan on Tuesday, July 1, and Healey signed it eight days later. Finegold also secured earmarks for North Andover in the same budget cycle, working alongside Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr, R-Gloucester, and Reps. Adrianne Ramos, D-North Andover, and Tram Nguyen, D-Andover.
Residents can contact the town manager's office or Finegold's district office for updates on fund distribution timelines and project details.
