MEMBERS PRESENT: Attendance: Pat Botteron, Sue Larsen, Roy Normen, Betty Warren, Herb Asplund, Louise Evans, Mike Gantick, Carol Heffler, Jeff Folger, Vinnie Wilson Betty Osborne, George Caye, Karl Reichle, Kathy Hale
Chairman Pat Botteron called the meeting to order at 5:33 pm.
Pat Botteron started the meeting with a moment of silence in memory of Jim Snow.
Matt Galligan could not be present at this meeting.
PUBLIC PARTICIPATION:
None
ACCEPTANCE OF MINUTES:
Minutes of the July meeting were not available and would be sent out later.
NEW BUSINESS:
Mike Gantick will be speaking at the Conference on Urban & Community Forestry in CT. on Nov. 3rd. Marcia Banach will be joining him. Mike will give us a presentation next month.
Jeff Folger reported on the improvements to the parking lot near Stowe Kitchens. This will be a major parking improvement to the Major Donnelly Park. Also a hard gravel lot has been completed as part of the reconstruction of the S curve on West St.
Pat Botteron reported the Kilkenny Heights deal has closed. There is no letter yet on the Neiderwerfer Property. Kathy Hale wanted the Task Force to write a position letter on the property but the task force wasn’t sure a letter would be appropriate until the Audubon Society decided what it wanted to do. There is no development pressure at this time.
Pat Botteron wanted a schedule for the Heritage Day on Oct 2nd. We had already stated we would be interested in participating.
Pat 8:30 am. Till…….
Carol sometime in the morning
Sue 2:00 – 4:00 pm
Betty O. 10:00-12:00
Mike 11:00 – 1:00
Jeff 8:30, will help with setup.
Jeff will meet with Pat to review the inventory of pamphlets, maps and coloring books.
Ginny Hole came to speak about Family Day on Oct. 23rd from 10:00 – 2:00 and Family Day at Wapping Park on Nov. 7th. The Committee decided to participate in the event on Nov. 7th. Since it was still over a month away, the members would check their calendars to see what time they would be available to help.
OLD BUSINESS:
Pat Botteron brought up again the idea of a Property Owners Meeting. It has been over 10 years since we held one. Betty Warren could send out the letters. This event would be hosted with SWALPAC and Inland Wetlands.
Pat Botteron reported on the status of the Nelson property. She had spoken to the Town Manager and the discussions were still ongoing.
Pat Botteron would like everyone to take another look at the Master Plan.
The definition of Open Space Task Force is in the Subdivision Open Space Ordinance. The wording may need to be updated to reflect the current authorities given to the Task Force. Kathy Hale will investigate if the Task Force shows up in other ordinances and how the additional functions were granted and when.
Jeff Folger spoke about merging the Conservation Commission with the Open Space Task Force. Our duties are more in line with the Conservation Commission than they are with Inland Wetlands. This has been tabled until we get the opportunity to investigate this a little more.
CORRESPONDENCE:
We received a thank you note from Parks & Recreation for the donation made in memory of Jim Snow.
OTHER BUSINESS
Election of Officers: Unanimous Votes for Pat Botteron as Chairman, Louise Evans as Vice Chairman and Sue Larsen as Secretary
EXECUTIVE SESSION:
The task force went into executive session to discuss the Nelson property.
ADJOURNMENT:
The meeting was adjourned at 7:07 p.m.
Our next meeting will be Oct. 4th.
Respectfully Submitted,
Sue W. Larsen
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