Minutes 2007

Royalston Open Space Committee

Minutes

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Meeting Date: May 10, 2007
Members Present: Aaron Ellison, Jack Morse, Patti Carrier, Christine Beckert Long
Chair: Aaron Ellison
Clerk: Christine Beckert Long

The meeting convened at 7:30 p.m. at town hall.

Minutes:
The committee unanimously approved the minutes of March 8, 2007.
(Due to a snowstorm, the committee did not meet in April.)

Committee Matters:
(1) Aaron submitted the committee's annual report for FY06, incorporating the spread sheet done by Patty to identify formal open space plan accomplishments.

(2) Aaron recommended that the committee identify a project. Among the possibilities discussed are encouraging residents to describe their favorite places in Royalston, promoting the zoning amendments, developing an open spaces/recreation map for town distribution, and/or initiating the CPA campaign. (See below for details.)

Town Issues:
(1) Aaron reported the process of the town's taking U parcels: The assessors certify to the state their efforts to identify owners, the state signs off, the assessors initiate tax title action. Aaron will write to the assessors, urging they write that certification letter.

(2) The committee discussed how we might be more active in promoting the zoning amendment process - possibly by organizing meetings or getting information out. The recommendations prepared by the consultant are on the website; Jack will make paper copies available for committee members at the library. For the June meeting, members should read this document to identify key open space issues.

Open Spaces:
(1) Regarding the Tully Lake subdivision: The developers have dropped their appeal in land court, opening the door to the possibility of their submitting a new plan.

(2) Regarding the Forest Legacy program: Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust is urging large landowners in its 23-town region to have appraisals done as a step in possibly securing a conservation restriction.

Public Outreach:
(1) Aaron announced that the OSC page on the town website now includes a link to the North Quabbin Woods website, where descriptions of most of the town's recreational resources can be found.

(2) Chris showed a sample of another town's open space/recreation map, and the committee discussed the possibility of our doing one, using existing maps as a base. The committee will discuss this further at a later meeting.

The meeting adjourned at 8:15 p.m.