MINUTES
REGULAR MEETING
Wednesday, February 10, 2015 at 7:00 P.m.
Town Hall, 2nd Floor Conference Room
302 Main Street
I. CALL TO ORDER
II. ROLL CALL
Members Present
Walter Smith
Nina Garrett
Robert Fish
Richard Esty
E. Grochowski
Members Absent
Pat Ingellis
Jerry Brophy
Land Use Department Staff Present
Sandy Prisloe, Environmental Planner
Kathleen Noyes, Recording Clerk
III. REGULAR BUSINESS
A. Minutes
MOTION to approve the minutes from the Conservation Commission’s Regular Meeting of January 13 , 2015.; MADE by N. Garrett ; SECONDED by R. Esty; VOTED IN FAVOR: W. Smith, R. Fish, N. Garrett, R. Esty, E. Grochowski; OPPOSED: none; ABSTAINED: none; APPROVED: 5-0-0.
- Correspondence and Announcements
W. Smith talked about an article that was recently published in The Harbor News about storm water management.
- Sea Level Rise Climate Adaptation Committee
Ralph Lewis, Professor, Marine Science Department from UConn, will be speaking on Thursday, February 12, 2015 at 3:30 p.m. at the Pasbeshauke Pavilion at Saybrook Point. His presentation will be about the effects of sea level rise on marine geology in Old Saybrook.
The Committee is continuing to have its members present on their assigned topics, and they are working on plans for community education and outreach.
D. Sustainable Saybrook
R. Fish held a Sustainable Saybrook meeting. E. Grochowski, S. Prisloe and some residents who have been active in the past with Sustainable Saybrook attended. R. Fish said the group was enthusiastic about continuing to meet. In order for the group to continue, the group needs a web master, a group leader and support from town government.
R. Fish spoke to First Selectman Carl Fortuna, and he would like the group to continue especially with their Green Up Day initiative and their involvement with energy savings and conservation. The work the group did with The Solar Challenge was very successful.
Sustainable Saybrook currently has 12 pillars. R. Fish suggested they narrow down the number of pillars and focus on only a few.
R. Esty shared an article with various energy tips from Westchester Buon Appetito magazine. He thought it would be helpful to put some of these tips on the Sustainable Saybrook web site.
- Wetlands and Aquifer Commissions
W. Smith offered to be the Wetlands Representative for the Conservation Commission for one year. At this point, he’s going on 15 months. R. Esty has offered to take over as Wetlands Representative.
- OS News and Events – March Topic
R. Esty is planning to submit an article to Saybrook Events on vernal pools by the end of this week.
W. Smith met with Town Planner Christine Nelson regarding the budget. He said at this point, the Conservation Commission budget is supporting both the Conservation Commission and the Sea Level Rise Climate Adaptation Committee. The Conservation Commission has requested more money for outreach and a possible lecture series.
IV. PROJECT UPDATES
The Newman Challenge Grant is still active. The closing date has been pushed back.
On February 24, 2015 at 7:00 p.m.in the 1st Floor Conference Room at Town Hall, 302 Main Street, at the Regularly Scheduled Selectmen’s Meeting, the interested parties are planning to meet and discuss the stewardship and management of The Preserve as well as funding and regulations.
W. Smith suggested the Conservation Commission put a memo together with their recommendations that can be brought to the meeting. W. Smith and R. Fish both plan to attend the meeting.
N. Garrett and E. Grochowski met to discuss the Conservation Commission’s newsletter. They shared their ideas for the logo and for the format of the newsletter. Commissioners agreed with their suggestions, and N. Garrett offered to bring the ideas to Essex Printing so they can create a template. W. Smith suggested calling it Saybrook Conservation Circular, and R. Esty suggested adding conservation tips and a border.
N. Garrett said the Conservation Commission will get 100 glossy 2- sided printed copies of the newsletter with the members’ names, announcements, a central article and conservation news that pertain to Old Saybrook with related links.
The newsletter, which will be available in PDF format, could also be brought to different places in town such as Acton Library, the grocery stores, etc.
Also, the newsletter can be added as an online link to Sustainable Saybrook as well as the Conservation Commission web page.
- Municipal Ecological Landscape Planting Guidance Document
W. Smith has not been able to meet with Casey Constable, but he plans to meet with her next week.
N. Garrett and W. Smith went to Yale to participate in a discussion regarding an urban gardens grant. They found out that Old Saybrook was not eligible because they are not a targeted or stressed community.
E. Grochowski talked about potential topics for a lecture series. She said landscaping, energy conservation, wildlife and habitat were some ideas that came out of the Sustainable Saybrook Survey. She thought it would be a good idea to have 4 lectures relating to one topic.
R. Esty suggested presenting multiple topics since this is the first attempt at a lecture series, and varied topics may reach a broader number of people.
V. NEW BUSINESS
Discuss role of CC in Nature-Based Tourism
W. Smith said Old Saybrook is already a nature-based tourism town because of our beaches and parks. With the addition of The Preserve it will be even more so. He asked Commissioners what being a nature -based tourism town means to the Conservation Commission.
N. Garrett suggested more signage, story boards and education stations. She did caution that theft can be a problem though.
R. Fish said the town already has the Natural Heritage Tour and Notable Trees brochures. They may need updating.
R. Esty suggested that there be some sort of public transportation such as a trolley that can take people from the shore to the woods to allow people to visit more than one spot. This would alleviate parking issues as well. He also suggested that the trolley be equipped with bike racks, so people could take their bicycles. He said at one point Parks & Recreation was looking into the possibility of purchasing a trolley.
W. Smith asked Commissioners to think about what the Conservation Commission can do to improve the nature-based tourism experience for people.
R. Fish suggested collaborating with neighboring towns to make this area a regionally based eco-tourism destination.
VI. ADJOURNMENT
MOTION to adjourn the meeting at 8:15 p.m. until the next regularly scheduled meeting of the Conservation Commission which will be Tuesday, March 10, 2015, 7:00 P.M., Town Hall, 2nd Floor Conference Room, 302 Main Street; MADE by E. Grochowski; SECONDED by R. Esty; VOTED IN FAVOR: W. Smith, R. Esty, N. Garrett, E. Grochowski, R. Fish; OPPOSED: none; ABSTAINED: none.; APPROVED: 5-0-0.
Respectfully Submitted,
Kathleen Noyes, Recording Clerk
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