TOWN OF SUTTON

Sutton Conservation Commission

Draft Meeting Minutes

Wednesday, June 12, 2019

Present: Wally Baker, Co-Chair; Henry Howell, Co-Chair; Don Davis; Barbara Hoffman; Debbie Lang; Amy Highstrom; Chuck Bolduc and Bonnie Hill.

Members of the public present: Dan Sundquist, Betsy Forsham, Melinda Wilder, Rebecca Hemingway, Winfried Feneberg and Brian Kellogg

 

Call to order: Henry Howell called the meeting to order at 6:32 p.m.

 

Previous Meeting’s Minutes: Wally made a motion to approve the minutes from May 8^th’s meeting, and Debbie seconded. As there were no issues with the minutes, the vote was unanimously in favor.

 

Financial Report:

Debbie reported that as of the end of May, the Conservation Fund contained $140,207.97 and the KHR fund contained $2745.85. Another LUCT check for $4,500 will be deposited this Friday, and there is still $14,000 in LUCT money yet unpaid.  $380 in dues/conferences was paid out last month, and $903.11 has been spent so far this year. The members agreed to spend $100 each on memberships to NH Lakes and ASLPT.

 

Correspondence:

• Letter of thanks and easement deed for Webb/Crowell from ASLPT.
• SPNHF’s Forest Notes magazine, Spring 2019 issue.
• Note from ASLPT with list of upcoming events and reminder to renew membership.
• Notice from Merrimack County Conservation District about their 2019 Annual Dinner.
• Letter from NH Lakes with membership renewal form and details about accomplishments from the last year and plans for the coming year.
• Letter from FEMA informing Town of Sutton officials that FEMA will be conducting field studies in the community during the course of this year, obtaining data to be used in producing updated Flood Insurance Study Reports and Flood Insurance Rate Maps.
• Poster for an Outdoor Forestry workshop & walk by Tim Fleury, County Forester, June 29^th 9 to noon, Tucker Mountain Rd in East Andover. Sponsored by the Andover Conservation Commission.
• From the InterTown Record: The BOS has expressed concern to NH Electric Coop in response to their notification about herbicide treatments in their rights of way.
• From the InterTown Record: A committee has started meeting regarding the use of the property at 26 Grist Mill Rd. Don Davis and Wally Baker are both on the committee.

Review of Wetland Applications and Issues:

• None.

 

Review of Intents to Cut and Logging Issues:

• Turner–Meadowsend Timberlands, T/L #08-692-066, Baker Hill Rd, 120 acres out of 165.
• Prime, T/L #03-273-167, Beaver Pond Road, 15 acres out of 313, Tim Wallace, forester.

Amy said King Brook runs through the middle of the Turner lot, and there is a steep slope. Wally suggested calling Anita Blakeman to get her thoughts. Regarding the Prime cut, Don said there is a mess being made of the Gore Road, which he thinks is a Class VI road. He said he would speak to someone on the BOS and see if they can get the road agent to take a look.

Appointment: 7:00 PM KRHS presentation on joint projects with SCC

Melinda Wilder, the extended learning opportunity person at KRHS, gave a presentation, supported by Rebecca Hemingway, the transition coordinator; Brian Kellogg, physics teacher; and Winfried Feneberg, superintendent of schools. Henry started by saying that he has been representing the SCC the whole time that he has been working with the high school, so the students have been able to get community service credit.

And now the extended learning department of the school is taking this further, with the idea of building a suspension bridge across a gully on the Lyon Brook Trail at KHR. Henry is sending around a petition to various groups to see if there is interest in creating a handicapped-accessible trail and has gotten many signatures so far. The bridge would be necessary if an accessible trail were to be created in this location. Melinda said they are deeply invested in this project, as they want to give students experiences in which they can apply what they are learning. Rebecca thanked Henry for all the teaching involved in the rain garden project, which encompassed a whole educational curriculum. A timeline of projects included the Lyon Brook bridge (2016), the rain garden (2017), the vernal pool bridge (2018), kiosks (2019), and carved arrow trail markers (2019). Project goals: create a 16-meter handicap-accessible pedestrian suspension bridge, collaborate with professional engineers, use natural and local sustainable materials, and document the process on film. Future projects: butterfly garden; GPS contour map; install kiosks at Webb/Crowell, Maple Leaf, Lefferts and the Bean Quarry gate; historical and nature self-guided tours; and fall maintenance. Eagle Scout Matthew Churchwell is working on a project with Henry to build a small boardwalk at the end of the bridge at Webb/Crowell. Wally said there is going to be a cleanup effort at KLNA and that this would be another opportunity for students to get involved. He spoke highly of the students he’s worked with in the past and said he would be happy to help with the suspension bridge project. Don said there are a lot of special requirements for accessible trails that will need to be taken into account in the bridge design. He said his great uncle wrote a story about three boys going on a fishing trip in the area where the high school stands today, and he would like to give a copy of that story to the high school. Melinda and Rebecca said they would be happy to have it. Henry said that Emily Anderson’s class will be working on GPS mapping in the fall, and these are the maps that will go into the kiosks. Rebecca said that Henry brought the materials and the architectural plans for the kiosks to the school, and the students had to follow these plans to build them. Amy and Don are going to serve as mentors for the historically-oriented parts of the projects. Brian said he is thinking about an underspan suspension bridge design, as that would be more natural-looking. The abutments will be granite slabs or piles of rocks, and Wally said he might be able to supply granite. Winfried said they really appreciate the collaboration between the schools and the town, and the students love it. He thanked Henry for his efforts. Henry said he sees the collaborative effort as a troika: the schools, the town, and businesses.

 

Old business

Subcommittee report on the ‘2018 Strategic Conservation Plan Update’– Dan Sundquist was invited to come and speak about the plan. Barb asked Dan if the Atlantic White Cedar Swamp on Chalk Pond Rd should be added to the Strategic Plan, as it is the farthest west and north example of this habitat. Dan suggested adding a paragraph about it under the Uncommon Habitats section. Amy will get some descriptive information to Barb for her to use. Barb asked Dan if he would be willing to accompany the committee when they make the rounds of the BOS, Planning Board, ZBA and finally the public, to present the plan. Dan then revealed that he is moving to Wyoming and will only be in Sutton for another month or two. He offered to meet with Barb for a knowledge transfer, and said people are welcome to call him with questions. Chuck asked if there was a way to hand off the GIS data, and Dan said that Chuck would need the shape files. He will send everything he can to Chuck. Chuck is looking into open source software to edit the files. Dan will also send documentation to Barb. Wally asked Dan about prioritizing land over the major aquifer under North Road and Kearsarge Valley Rd, Dan suggested landowner cultivation.

Dan left, and this discussion was resumed later when Betsy Forsham arrived. Barb handed out copies of the minutes of the subcommittee’s meeting on 6/10/2019. Items 1 through 3 in the minutes have been discussed above; here is the rest:

4. Propose to the SCC that we increase conservation of properties containing high priority water resources by 5% a year until 50% of such properties are protected.
5. Propose to the SCC that we increase conservation of agricultural properties and allow town-owned land to be used for agricultural purposes.
6. Present the plan to the boards mentioned above, then make any necessary changes or additions to the plan.
7. Hold a public meeting with ASLPT to explain the plan and the conservation easement process; send invitations to owners of land in high-priority areas, in addition to public notices. Ask owners who have conserved their land, such as Rob O’Neil, to talk about the process, and discuss how the SCC can assist.

 

Betsy said the SCC put on a public program in 2006 called “What is a conservation easement?” in which some people who had put easements on their land spoke about it. The SCC sent personal invitations to landowners who have parcels greater than 25 acres. She said this would be easier to do now using Dan’s map and targeting the owners of high priority parcels. She said the cedar swamp has been on the radar for a long time, and both the Nature Conservancy and SPNHF have been interested. Even though the parcel is not buildable, however, the owner was not interested in selling. In reference to item 4, Don said that showing aquifers on the map would be a great tool for use in situations like the BOS addressing NH Electric Coop with concerns about water quality. Chuck suggested that we leave the final co-occurrence map in the strategic plan as it is, and create new ones as needed with different areas of focus. He said protecting groundwater resources should not only be up to us; it is bigger than that and needs to be handled town- or state-wide. Regarding item 5, Chuck spoke of its relevance to climate change resilience, and the loss of Midwestern cropland due to drought and flooding. Don said some people with farms might be interested in easements if they knew they could get money from the SCC. Barb said there are some minor edits to be made to Dan’s document. She will do that and add the cedar swamp info and then they will proceed with items 6 and 7. Betsy said she is happy to consult and throw out ideas, and that we should look in the folder to see what programs were done in the past. Henry said with Jane having left we have no one handling publicity or programs. The subcommittee will handle this. Henry said the subcommittee is doing a great job.

 

Horse Beach parking issues: KLNA, KLPA and NSIS update – Wally attended the meeting on May 23^rd and talked to Bob DeFelice, Pete and Marne Thompson, and Jean LaChance. He explained that he wants to take out the old railroad ties, put in some granite edging, do some grading, and remove shrubbery growing up through the riprap. He got permission from the BOS to remove the large living tree beside the road. In the parking lot, he wants to dump some loads of gravel, grade it out, and pitch it. He suggested that the line of lilies be moved back out of the way. There also needs to be a maintenance agreement with the town to keep the parking lot in good shape. No one expressed any objections to his proposal, and they said they would get back to him, but have not yet done so. He wants to go ahead with the work and said when the road agent has the time, it’s going to get done. Bonnie said the tree was not supposed to be removed without a vote. It’s the only shade tree in that area, is fully leafed out, and has been topped so that it is in no danger of falling over. Amy suggested replacing the tree with a good quality young tree farther from the road, and Wally said a row of small trees could even be planted. Bonnie asked if the town would pay for it, and the answer was that the SCC would have to. Wally said the town will pay to have the big tree cut down and the stump removed. The wood would go to the town to be given to people in need. Don said in case there are birds nesting in the tree, its removal should wait until the young birds have fledged. Wally made a motion that the big tree be removed and replaced with a $500 tree at such time that any nestling birds have fledged. Barb seconded.  The vote was 7 to 1 in favor.

 

Update on Amy’s Butterfly talk – Don brought in the finished posters and passed them out. Amy said she would speak to someone about using town hall for the talk. She is having the talk vetted by an expert from the Massachusetts Butterfly Group who was a pioneer of citizen science. She wants to collect contact info from attendees and give them the opportunity to be trained and participate in butterfly surveys. Don said he would handle publicity in the InterTown Record.

 

Miscellaneous

Don is trying to make contact with Larry Harper about preserving 2 historical items on his property – the town pound and site of the first town meeting. Signage for these would be a great middle school project.

Adjournment: As Henry would like to try to keep these meetings to a reasonable length, the rest of the agenda was deferred to next month. The meeting was adjourned at 8:35 PM.

Next Meeting:  Wednesday, July 10th, 2019, at 6:30 PM.

Respectfully submitted,

Bonnie Hill, Secretary