TOWN OF SUTTON

Sutton Conservation Commission

Draft Meeting Minutes

Wednesday, August 8, 2018

Present: Dan Sundquist, Chair; Don Davis; Barbara Hoffman; Henry Howell; Chuck Bolduc and Bonnie Hill, secretary.

Absent: Jane Williamson; Debbie Lang.

Call to order: Dan Sundquist called the meeting to order at 6:34 p.m.

Previous Meeting’s Minutes: As there were no issues found with the minutes from the July 11^th meeting, Henry made a motion to approve them and Chuck seconded. The minutes were approved unanimously.

Financial Report:

There was no bank statement in the file. The town budget report for the month of July shows that we have about 73% of our town budget left. This includes $2300 for special projects. Dan asked Henry to report on his needs for trail work. Henry said he got a bunch of free tools at the transfer station. He said there is a need for crushed stone on the Hominy Pot trail in the wet area where it curves up the hill. The culvert there is clogged and the snowmobile club is supposed to maintain it but has not. Don said they are actually supposed to remove the culvert in the summer and just let the trench act as a water bar. Dan said we need to show that we are making some positive, constructive progress on the use of the special projects money. Henry said he will draw up a list of needs for what the trails require to make them user friendly. This will include kiosks, plaques, signage, etc. Dan suggested that we stockpile some lumber for future projects. Chuck pointed out that the mowing this year is going to cost extra money. Regarding that, Don has not yet been able to get a hold of Dave Carey, but will do so.

Correspondence:

• Letter from Friends of Mount Sunapee thanking SCC for the $100 contribution. Dan said we need to remember to keep that $100 in our budget for dues and memberships.

Review of Wetland Applications and Issues:

• Notice of Acceptance of Permit Application for G. Dellert. DES File #2018-02173, Camp Kemah Rd, T/L# 2-485,102.
• Wetlands Permit Application 7/21/2018 from Malan, for dock repair, Camp Kemah Rd, T/L #2-480,181. This expedited request is for repositioning the timbers of the dock. There will be no disturbance of the lake, and no material removed. The commission had no concerns about this permit. Henry made a motion to approve the application and Don seconded it. The vote was unanimously in favor, and Dan signed all of the copies of the application.
• Wetlands Permit Application 8/3/2018 from the Jeffrey Family 2011 Trust to create a perched beach, Lovett Road. T/L# 2-478,356. Jen McCourt came to the meeting to speak about this expedited request. Henry wanted to know what a perched beach is. Jen said it is separated from the water by a rock berm. There is another rock berm at the upper edge of the beach. She said that although there is no wetlands impact, DES requires a wetlands permit. There were good, clear drawings of the project in the application. A turbidity curtain will be installed to help control erosion. Don asked if there will be a dock, and Jen said there is a seasonal dock that has already been permitted. Don made a motion to approve the application, and Henry seconded. The application was approved unanimously and Dan signed all the copies.
• Dan reported that the Forest Society called to say that they will be putting in for an expedited permit for wild trout stream enhancement. This effort is funded by a grant, and will involve dropping some trees into Mountain Brook on the Black Mountain Preserve to create habitat for the trout and the macroinvertebrates that they feed on. The work will start in October with some in-house training and scoping. Next year they will be running workshops that some of us might want to attend. Henry asked about getting trout stream assessments on the streams at KHR.

Review of Intents to Cut and Logging Issues:

• Andrewski III, T/L# 9-660,270, Shaker St, 10.5 of 11 acres, Nicholas Rowe, logger.

Old business

None.

New business

Issues at the William Bean Quarry — Betsy Forsham reported to us last week that she had seen ATV damage at the quarry from people who are accessing our trails via the steep bank. The boulders that were placed there as a barricade had been pushed aside. Don said he went up there yesterday to look. The vehicles went in at the place where the log landing was first created, before the loggers decided it was too steep. Don said if we put boulders there as a barricade they would have to be really huge, as otherwise these people might view them as a challenge and try to push them down into the road. Dan said he already spoke to Steve Bagley about putting boulders in at the east end of King Hill Rd. And Dan has put a gate on layaway at the Forest Society – it’s a good, heavy-duty gate on sale for $1000. Steve’s crew will install the gate for us, and while they are there with the backhoe they can put the boulders in place. We can decide all this at the September meeting, when more members are present. The gate will need to be carried here on a low-boy. Don said he has a Bean Quarry sign that just needs to be painted. It isn’t very large. Dan will get some “No motorized vehicles except snowmobiles” signs (from Fish & Game?) and put them up at the quarry. Don said, on the class 6 portion of the road, 4-wheelers come down to almost where the class 6 portion ends, then turn left to go into the quarry. There is no snowmobile trail there, but snowmobiles are being used informally. Dan said we have to leave a 3-foot gap between the gate and the first boulder for snowmobiles to get through. Henry thought this might be enough for ATVs to enter through, as well. Henry and Dan plan to visit the quarry and check things out.

SCC Properties

Trail upkeep and development—Henry brought in copies of the ASLPT Chatter and the InterTown Record to show us the articles about the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the Vernal Pool Bridge in KHR He said the Felch Trail still needs work, and Bonnie said she, Donna, Jane and Betsy were planning to go in and work some more on it one of these days. Henry says he has mapped most of our trails with the Gaia app. Ultimately, he’d like them to look like the maps in the SRKG book, with little descriptions of all the trails. He’d like to have kiosks at KHR and Webb/Crowell with plaques, like the one at King Arthur Flour. The old signs at KHR are in good shape but just need to have the red letters touched up. He thought Debbie had expressed interest in doing this. Don said he has some blank white signs that just need to be lettered. Bonnie said Donna is willing to do work on signage. Dan asked if there are any other trails that we still need to map. Don said the Enroth Trail. This one doesn’t need a paper map, since it’s short. Chuck suggested the Johnson property. Don suggested the old roads behind Fox Chase Rd. Dan said he is building a map with not only our town trails, but also the Forest Society and ASLPT trails, etc. This will be a master map that can be posted on the town website. The second level will be to post it at trailheads, in kiosks, etc, in addition to electronic outreach. Dan and Henry still need to get together and crank out some maps using Henry’s data and Dan’s mapping system. They made a plan to do it after they get together at the quarry. Don said he has Gaia now and will map the Enroth trail.

Miscellaneous

Winter parking on King Hill Rd  — Chuck pointed out that with the construction of the two new houses on King Hill Rd, people are no longer allowed to park at the end of the town-plowed portion of that road. He wondered whether the town could plow all the way up to the Maple Leaf parking lot. Dan said we can’t direct the road agent to do that. We may have to take this up at Town Meeting.

Herbicide use on Rt. 89 – Don reported that on the northbound side of 89, just before exit 10, there is a lot of Japanese Knotweed that is now dead. He is wondering what was used to kill it, and is concerned about the wells below that area. Dan suggested that Don do some research on this.

Adjournment: As Jane was still absent at 7:30, the discussion of KLNA issues was postponed until next month. There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 7:40 PM.

The next meeting will be held on Wednesday, September 12th, 2018, at 6:30 PM.

Respectfully submitted,

Bonnie Hill, Secretary