HORSE HILL NATURE PRESERVE

AD HOC COMMITTEE

Minutes of Monday, January 3, 2005

Courtroom at Town Hall

7:30 p.m.

Members Present: Debra Huffman, Tim Tenhave, Janet Cormier, Connie Kreider, Harold Watson, Helynne Wenz, Shannon Barnes, Andy Powell, Ruth Roulx, Newton Coryell

Also present: Richard Maloon

Call to Order: Tim Tenhave called the meeting to order at 7:36 p.m.

Announcements and Updates: Tim Tenhave made the following announcements:

The BOS reinstated $10,000 into the budget for HHNP.

At the next meeting there will be elections for Chairman and Vice Chairman.

Andy Powell is still trying to schedule the walk with Dan Cyr.

Tim distributed copies of the committee's official charge as it was defined in the fall of 2003.

Comments from the Public: Richard Maloon asked if the new trail map was ready yet. Tim replied that he has been in touch with Rick Cote, who is working with the Eagle Scouts, and Rick said they are preparing the final packages and that the town has received a copy recently. Debra Huffman asked if they had corrected the missing trail that she told Rick about. Tim was not sure. Richard stated that he downloaded aerial photographs of the property in one meter increments but that he needs a program to stitch them together. Tim was interested in getting more information from Richard.

Review of Minutes: Tim reported that the December minutes are available in draft form if anyone would like them, but that they are not ready for review by the committee.

Trail Master Plan Review: Last summer, Walter Warren asked the committee to assist him by evaluating the trails on HHNP and making recommendations about potential improvements. The Trails subcommittee has been working on that task and has written a preliminary draft of a Trails Master Plan for Walter's consideration. Debra Huffman distributed copies of the draft plan for the committee's review, and the following comments were made:

The subcommittee is working with Ernie Buck from the DPW to be sure the trails follow town standards.

The subcommittee has consulted with Bob Spoerl, Trails Specialist with the Bureau of Trails, and he will be walking the proposed trails when the plan is closer to completion.

Section 2.1 contains a summary of existing trails including their purpose, condition, and environmental concerns. Andy Powell suggested that the list also include scenic areas serviced by each trail.

Section 2.4 describes the PSNH easement. Tim Tenhave suggested that this section include PSNH's cutting schedule. Helynne Wenz suggested that it include clarification of town ownership and the rights conveyed by the easement. Newton Coryell offered to provide the original documents from earlier discussions with PSNH. Andy Powell suggested that this section include a description of the ownership of the power line before it enters and after it leaves the HHNP property.

Section 3.1 should include a section addressing the total length of all trails as it pertains to maintainability.

Janet Cormier and Debra discussed the fact that trails 1, 2, and 4 could be rerouted if fields are planned for the northwest section of the property.

Shannon Barnes suggested that the historical points of interest listed in Section 3.3 should be linked in some way with the Historical Society's web site and the Heritage Commission's web page. She stated that other groups, such as an Ecological Club at the high school, might be interested in the ecological points of interest and the committee should be sure to make the town aware of the resources available.

Andy Powell noted that visitors should be discouraged from the heron rookery area during nesting season.

Connie Kreider raised the issue of trails that lead to roads where there is no parking lot. This could cause a problem for the neighbors. The two trails in question are proposed only to service the local neighbors, so it might not be useful to have them on the map at all. It was determined that the committee should raise this issue to Walter and ask that he determine what the town's position should be. Shannon Barnes noted that signs will direct visitors to the parking lot(s) rather than to small trails that exit onto a road.

Harold Watson offered to continue to allow hikers to use the trail through his property to access to the HHNP from the Riverside Dr./Davidson Ave. area. It was noted that there might be legal ramifications to this and it will be elevated to Walter.

Tim noted that the proposed trail network in Section 3.5 looked "busy" in some areas and several people agreed. It was noted that most of the trails on the map are existing trails and the map depicts the goal for the trail network over many years. Not all trails will be completed in the near term. Debra agreed to add a new map to Section 3.7 that will make the top priorities clearer.

Andy Powell asked if the eroded trail up Blodgett Hill had been eliminated. Debra answered that it was necessary to have some route up that side of the hill but that the trail could be moved 50' into the woods if necessary to avoid the eroded area.

Andy commented that the residents of the southwest corner of town (the Dahl, Bates, and Peaslee areas) are not well served by this proposal. He suggested adding an access point off the old section of Gauthier Rd. Helynne Wenz explained that Bob Spoerl had recommended closing the trail under the power line in this area and creating a new trail a little south of the power line. It was generally agreed that this would be a good idea.

It was clarified that trails 5 and 12 were proposed as mountain bike trails and would be constructed and maintained by the mountain bike group, as they have constructed a trail on other town land.

Debra stated that she gave the draft plan to Walter Warren and that work on the plan will stop until he lets them know if this is what he wants. The next phase is to fill in the details in Sections 2.2 and 3.6 and that will be a lot of work. The subcommittee does not want to move forward until they hear from Walter. Tim stated that he would talk to Walter about the plan.

Updates from Subcommittees:

Parking Subcommittee - Newton Coryell stated that he will meet with Ed Chase and Walter Warren on Wednesday at 1:15 at the proposed parking area on Amherst Rd. The DPW is ready to start clearing and using their new chipper. Newton is putting together a time line for cutting and chipping it soon, then stumping and loaming it in late April. He has fill material that has been donated and Ed is looking into where to store the material.

Clean-Up Subcommittee - Tim Tenhave stated that they will meet in February to discuss the annual April event. Newton stated that when there is snow on the ground the SnoBuds will try to get some of the pieces out that have been inaccessible, like the car frame. They have access to a Hearse tool that will cut the frame.

Funding Subcommittee - Shannon Barnes reported that the subcommittee is compiling a grid of grants that are available. The grid will include information such as the grant amount, deadlines, commitments and any strings attached. Shannon emphasized that the subcommittee is not authorized to apply for grants; they are only compiling the information for the town. Janet Cormier suggested that the grid also note if there is seed money required so the town can prepare by saving toward the required amount. Newton Coryell gave Shannon information on a new grant available for constructing trails.

Athletic Fields Subcommittee - Janet Cormier reported that the subcommittee has not met but that the Parks and Recreation Committee discussed Horse Hill and the consensus is that the northwest area of the property is still their first choice. They will need an engineering study to determine what resources will be needed to construct the fields. She noted that this year's capital reserve funding was cut to zero dollars, which might impact funding the study. Connie Kreider asked if the Parks and Recreation committee would be talking directly to Walter about the Horse Hill fields and Janet replied that they would not. They would work through the Horse Hill committee and the Horse Hill Definitive Plan.

Historical Subcommittee - Connie Kreider reported that she will be calling subcommittee members to set a date for a meeting.

Wildlife Inventory Subcommittee - Helynne Wenz reported that she will be contacting subcommittee members soon to set a date for a meeting.

Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 9:08.