Conservation Commission
MINUTES
Regular Meeting – January 25, 2011 @ 6:00 pm
Town Municipal Center, 3 Primrose Street, Newtown, CT
Present: Commissioners Cramer, Gaudet-Wilson, Henderson, Hovious, Kaley and McLeod
Staff: Rob Sibley, Deputy Director of Planning and Land Use
The Public Meeting was called to order at 6:00 pm
Public Participation – Michael McCarthy from Cross Cut Tree and Land Management was present to discuss his request to cross a Town open space right of way for a timber harvest off of 150 Hanover Road. He currently has a Forest Practices application (FP #11-01) before the Inland Wetlands commission. After discussion, Commissioner Kaley motioned that the commission schedule a walk to inspect the area where Mr. McCarthy would like to cross the open space corridor. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Cramer. Motion carried unanimously.
Action Item – The Commission will schedule a walk to review the area proposed by Mr. McCarthy.
Items Added to the Agenda – Commissioner Hovious requested that a discussion of the State legislature’s bills on the preservation of agricultural lands be placed under New Business.
Correspondence – No updates.
Approval of Minutes – Commissioner Hovious motioned to approve the minutes of January 11, 2010. Commissioner Kaley seconded the motion. The minutes were approved unanimously.
Commissioner Hovious motioned to approve the minutes of December 21, 2010 Special Meeting. Commissioner Kaley seconded the motion. The minutes were unanimously approved as amended.
OLD BUSINESS – ACTION ITEMS
Fairfield Hills Open Space Recommendations – Commissioners Cramer and Henderson met with Deborah Zukowski from the Fairfield Hills Master Plan Review Committee to review the open space recommendations. Ms. Zukowski will present them at her subcommittee meeting.
Action Item – Commissioner Cramer will follow up on this and keep the commission updated.
Tech Park IWC Public Hearing – The next Inland Wetlands meeting will be held on January 26, 2011 with a possibility of a cancellation due to weather. The commissioners discussed the conservation easement language.
Yale Report Comments – Comments from the commission on the draft report have been forwarded to Yale. Commissioner Cramer is waiting for their response. It was noted that the report was very comprehensive and completed quickly.
NEW BUSINESS
Discussion of Possible Restructuring of Committees – Commissioners Wilson, Henderson and Kaley met to discuss aligning committee work to reflect the mission statement of the commission. The commissioners reviewed a draft Organization/Project List. The commission discussed reaching out to volunteers that previously signed up to help with invasive work to see if they are interested in helping with additional projects. The commissioners will reach out to other groups in Town for information and assistance. Although Martha Wright resigned as commissioner, the commission asked if she would agree to continue on as a valuable resource because of the great extent of her knowledge. Mr. Sibley discussed information from CACIWC and will e-mail a link to the commissioners. The commissioners are
urged to attend other commission/committee meetings as well.
Action Item – Mr. Sibley will e-mail a link to CACIWC to the commissioners
Meeting Procedures – The commissioners discussed meeting times and decided to change the start times of the meetings to 7:00pm. Commissioner Wilson asked for subcommittee reports to be e-mailed to the commission the day before each meeting, preferably by Noon. Also, if a commissioner misses a meeting, she asks that they keep updated on what was discussed during that meeting. Commissioners are encouraged to bring their calendars with them to each meeting and to respond to e-mails as soon as possible. As far as training new members, a mentoring system was suggested. She also discussed developing a list of neighbors of the open space parcels. Commissioner Hovious said a list of action items should be completed for each meeting. He also discussed the benefits of having an open space map
available for the commissioners.
Action Item - Mr. Sibley will send a .pdf of the open space map to the commissioners.
State Legislature - Preservation of Agricultural Lands (Fairfield Hills) - Commissioner Hovious discussed three House bills being introduced in the State Legislature to permanently protect State-owned farmland. The three bills (5201, 5203, and 5204) can be viewed on WWW.CT.Gov website. These House bills are to allow the State Department of Agriculture to place conservation easements on State-owned farmlands for long-term preservation. There is a Farmland Preservation Advisory Board working on this. Proposed Bill #5201 regards “An Act Concerning the Grant of Agricultural Conservation Easements on Certain State-owned Lands”. Proposed Bill #5203 regards “An Act Authorizing an Agricultural Conservation Easement on the Lands of
the Southbury Training School”. Proposed Bill #5204 regards “An Act Concerning the Implementation of Certain Recommendations by the Farmland Preservation Board”. One of the bills will include approximately 100 acres of Fairfield Hills that constitutes Agricultural land. The commission discussed getting the contacts for these committee members.
Action Item – Commissioner Cramer will contact Chris Lyddy to find out more information regarding these bills and the names and contact information of members of the State Committee on Environment.
PROGRESS REPORTS AND UPDATES
Point O’Rocks Trails Discussion – Commissioner Hovious received an e-mail from Mark Lurie regarding rerouting the proposed trail. Mr. Sibley said it is the responsibility of the commission to determine the appropriate usage of the trails on open space. Commissioner Cramer suggested signs on trails noting policies and specific restrictions for each. The commissioners discussed possible guidelines on trail building and communication with the Trails Committee. The Point O’Rocks Trail is currently approved as a walking trail. The commissioners will wait for spring to revisit the site.
Open Space Inventory and Maintenance Progress – Commissioner Hovious completed the review of his list of properties. He feels there should be a meeting with staff to discuss filing, maps, and action items regarding the list of properties.
Property Marking Plans, Surveying Status – Mr. Sibley met with CCA and assigned them three projects; the marking of open space off Sweetbriar, Antler Pine, and Pond Brook. Pole Bridge is marked with a new lot line.
Natural Resources Inventory Status Report – There are no updates from Milone and MacBroom. The commissioners discussed the fact that they have not been receiving any communication from the vendor and have not seen a draft of the document they were hired to complete. The commission discussed requesting a refund of the money that has been paid to date. Commissioner Hovious read a letter he received from the President of Milone and MacBroom apologizing for the delay in their responsibilities and stating that they would supply a draft report by July 2010. The commission and staff have lost complete confidence. All the contractual dates have long passed. A refund will be requested.
Action Item –Milone and MacBroom will be contacted
Conservation Subdivisions – No update.
Public Education Subcommittee Report – Commissioner Cramer received a phone call from someone in Woodbury who was interested in obtaining a copy of the subcommittee’s PowerPoint presentation on invasives.
Aquifer Withdrawal Status – No update.
TBDAC – Commissioner Germain said they are waiting for subcommittees to complete their sections so they can be pulled into a final draft report to be reviewed. Once reviewed, the final report will be compiled and sent to the Board of Selectmen.
Commissioner Kaley motioned to go into Executive Session at 8:05 pm. Commissioner Hovious motioned to adjourn Executive Session at 9:03 pm. Motion seconded by Commissioner Cramer.
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